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Superb English Plum Pudding
This plum pudding recipe from food legend James Beard is ideal for Christmas dinner. Serve it instead of fruitcake—or anytime you crave classic British cooking.
👥 12 Servings👤 James Beard📖 epicurious
🥘 Ingredients
Check off ingredients as you prepare them:
🍳 Cookware
- ●grater
- ●pot
- ●bowl
- ●pan
- ●whisk
- ●oven
📝 Preparation Steps
1
Fruit mixture:
2
Combine 1 lb. raisins, 1 lb. golden raisins, ½ lb. dried currants, 1 cup thinly sliced candied citron, 1 cup chopped candied orange peel, 1 tsp. ground cinnamon, ½ tsp. mace, ½ tsp. freshly grated nutmeg, ¼ tsp. ground cloves, ¼ tsp. allspice, ¼ tsp. freshly ground black pepper. If using shortening, grate 1 lb. vegetable shortening, frozen, on the large holes of a box grater. Add shortening or 1 lb. shredded suet, finely chopped, to fruit mixture and toss to combine. Add 1¼ cups cognac or brandy, cover tightly, and refrigerate for 4 days, tossing mixture once or twice per day. Do Ahead: Mixture can be made 3 months ahead; keep chilled.
. raisins1 lb(200 g) sugar, plus more for serving1 cup. golden raisins1 lbthinly sliced candied citron1 cupchopped candied orange peel1 cup. ground cinnamon1 tsp. vegetable shortening, frozen, or shredded suet, finely chopped1 lb¼ cups cognac or brandy1
3
Pudding and assembly:
4
Butter four 1½-qt. steamed pudding molds or heatproof bowls. Ready a steamer basket or large pot with water to come ½ way up the sides of molds and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to maintain steady steam.
5
Bring 1 cup whole milk just to the point of boiling over medium heat (watch closely). Transfer to a medium bowl and add 1 cup sherry or port and 1¼ lb. fresh breadcrumbs.
whole milk1 cup(200 g) sugar, plus more for serving1 cupsherry or port1 cup¼ lb. fresh breadcrumbs1
6
Whisk 12 large eggs, room temperature, with 1 cup (200 g) sugar in a large bowl until no streaks of egg remain. Add the fruit mixture, breadcrumb mixture, and 1 tsp. Diamond Crystal or ½ tsp. Morton kosher salt and mix thoroughly. Transfer the pudding to prepared pans, filling each about ⅔ full. Cover each pan with a large square of aluminum foil and secure foil with kitchen twine. Steam for 6–⏱️ 7 hours, checking periodically to make sure the water hasn’t boiled out and adding more as necessary.
large eggs, room temperature12(200 g) sugar, plus more for serving1 cup. Diamond Crystal or ½ tsp. Morton kosher salt1 tsp
7
Place rack in the center of oven; preheat oven to 250°. When cool enough to handle, uncover puddings and transfer to oven; bake for ⏱️ 30 minutes. Add ¼ tsp. cognac or brandy to each pudding, cover with foil and keep in a cool, dark place for at least 3 weeks and up to 1 year.
(200 g) sugar, plus more for serving1 cup. cognac or brandy, divided, plus more for serving1 tsp
8
To serve, steam puddings a second time for 2–⏱️ 3 hours. Place a platter over mold and invert; remove mold. If flambéing: Warm a few tablespoons cognac or brandy over low heat and sprinkle puddings with a little sugar. Drizzle warm cognac over puddings, ignite with a long match and bring to the table. Serve with crème anglaise. Editor’s note: This recipe was first printed in the December 1963 issue of ‘Gourmet’ as ‘Old-English Plum Pudding’ and has been updated for style. Head this way for more of our best Christmas desserts →
(200 g) sugar, plus more for serving1 cupcrème anglaise, to serve
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