Christmas cake and pudding

[Clarabel]

Hi guys,

I'm hoping to make christmas cake and christmas pudding this, maybe even as gifts! Anyone who has some well tested recipes and is willing to share I would greatly appreciate it!

Clare

[nogginthenog]

Hi Clarabel,

Thanks for the reminder!

Below is the recipe I use. I use it every year, but no idea where it came from.

Normally I use my 3 Gallon brew pot to steam 'em, but the flat I just moved into has only got an electric cooker. Not sure how it'll work. In the past I've used 2 large saucepans or an electric steamer.

This year I'm going to make my own mixed peel. I experimented with Pomelo peel recently which turned out really well.

- Paul (bit of a lurker, but been reading SSish recently again)

Ingredients:
8 oz shredded suet (225g) <- I use veggie suet!
1 heaped teaspoon mixed spice
1/2 teaspoon grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
4 oz self-raising flour (110g)
1 lb soft brown sugar (450g)
8 oz white breadcrumbs (225g), grated from a stale loaf
8 oz sultanas (225g)
8 oz raisins (225g)
1.25 lb currants (560g)
2 oz almonds (50g), blanched, skinned and chopped
2 oz mixed peel, finely chopped whole candied and citron peel
(if available)
The grated rind of one orange and one lemon
1 apple, peeled, cored and finely chopped
4 standard eggs
5 fl oz barley wine (150ml)
5 fl oz stout (150ml)
4 tablespoons rum

Method: basically you mix the dry stuff together in a big bowl.
Add the ingredients on by one and make sure they're well mixed.
In another bowl beat the eggs and add the other liquids. Then
pour the eggs etc into the dry stuff and mix it very thoroughly.
You may need to get two or three people to take turns (in fact
in my family everyone had a turn, it was a little ceremony, the
very first bit of Christmas). If it's too stodgy add more stout
till it just drops off the spoon when you knock it on the bowl.

Leave it overnight, then grease two bowls and divide the mixture
between them. Then tie each pudding up in a cloth and steam for
*8*hours*. Then leave for several weeks. When it comes to
Christmas, steam it for two hours (or you can microwave it for
about three minutes...) Serve with brandy butter.

[Shirley]

- Paul (bit of a lurker, but been reading SSish recently again)

with good info like that... thank god you are leaving lurkdom and sharing with us

[the.fee.fairy]

ooh that looks delicious. Think i'll have to give that a go (or put it on the 'give it a go' list anyway )

By steaming it (excuse the stupid question...) do you mean hang it in the fabric, over some steam, or in some water? (i'm asking because i don't quite understand how to steam in a brewpot!!)

Ta

[nogginthenog]

Just a bit of water in the bottom of the saucepan is enough, maybe an inch or so, just be sure it doesn't run dry (you did read the 8 hour bit right :-). It doesn't matter if the puddings are in contact with the water - you can stack them. Make sure your saucepan/steamer is sealed and use the lowest power/gas setting. Probably in the oven will work too (I think I did that one year).

I used foil pudding cases last year with greaseproof paper wrapped over the top, held in place with some string. The foil cases get pretty manky, with the fat & sugar that leaks out. You might want to get some extras if you're giving them away!

I've used plastic cases in the past which worked OK. I'd might try a 'circle' traditional pudding shape this year, I guess need some cheese cloth or muslin.

Oh, and make sure you get tipsy when making them - it's a tradition! They only sell stout & barley wine in 4 packs around here, and it's a shame to waste it!

[Clarabel]

Wow! Hope everyone likes christmas pudding!

I'll let you know how I get on!

Clare

[den_the_cat]

This is the basic recipe I use for our cakes

750g raisins
750g sultana
375g currants
250g mixed peel
250g glace cherries
125g dried apricots
125g stoned dates

2/3 cup sherry
125g almonds
500g softened butter
2.5 cups brown sugar
2 tablespoons golden syrup
1 teaspoon glycerine
2 teaspoons grated lemon rind
8 eggs
5 cups flour
1 cup self raising flour
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon bicarb of soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

shop and mix fruits and soak in sherry overnight

preheat oven to gas 2 (150/300) and line 10-11 inch cake tin well

mix almonds into fruit

cream butter and sugar, add golden syrup. glycerine. lemon rind and beat well, add eggs one at a time beating after each one

sift dry ingredients and add half the dry and half the fruit, mix well

add the rest of the dry and rest of the fruit, mix well again

put into tin, bake at gas 2 for 1 hour, reduce temp to Gas 1/2 - 1 (120/250) and cook for about 4 more hours. Cool in the tin and then turn out. Keep three weeks before icing.



But over the years I've mucked about with it - its really forgiving of things you don't have or like being left out. Very dark sugar makes it work best, the glycerine can be ignored without a problem and I think orange instead of lemon tastes nicer. I ignore the ratios of fruit and just mix it up depending on what siozes the packets are and leave out the glace cherries totally but always include dried cherries, dried cranberries and dried apple (which makes it really really moist) and lots of dates.

I also cook it in two smaller cake tins because its a HUGE amount of mix, you need a massive bowl to cope with it - I have a big square cake storage box which I use to mix it in and its just about right.

Finally I totally over alcohol it - I basically get a half bottle of brandy into the fruit before I start and another half bottle into the cakes between making them and christmas (I make them in August so they have time to steep properly), which really packs a punch. I do get more requests for cakes every year though so people do seem to like them very boozy and moist.

[ina]

They certainly do! However, I once took a Christmas cake in to work, and everybody declined a second slice... Not that they didn't like it, they were afraid they wouldn't be able to drive after that! Needless to say, I was the only one without a car.

What I don't understand is the need for all that sugar in these heavy fruitcakes. I generally leave it out altogether, and nobody has commented on it so far. Sometimes I add a spoonful of molasses or honey, just for the flavour. Oh, and of course I always use wholemeal flour. It actually gives a nuttier flavour, so you can save on the nuts if you like.

And do you have any idea what the glycerine is for? That's the first time I've come across that in a recipe!

[den_the_cat]

no idea, its from a really old book and I didn't have any on the house the first time I made it so I left it out - and have never bothered about it since. Perhaps because the ratio of fruit to binding incredients can make it crumbly? Wholemeal flour is a great idea though, the almonds are a pain - I always forget to add them!

With the sugar, I'd never thought about it but there must be so much in the fruit and alcohol it could easily be left out. The type of sugar does make a huge difference to the colour of the finished cake though - normal brown makes it 'standard fruit cake' colour and the really sticky dark stuff makes it almost black, so replacing the golden syrup with molasses might do both jobs.

Actually I don't know if anyone has any better ideas for this - my brother is allergic to jam so I use honey to stick the marzipan to the cake, but its not very good (better than nothing but nowhere near jam) - anyone got any ideas for stuff I could try?

[the.fee.fairy]

looks good!

I've put together my shopping list, so fingers crossed i'll be able to make them soon.

Going to use plastic bowls, the ones that shop-bought puddings come in. I have visions of ending up witha christmas pudding coloured bit of muslin with some curants in the middle otherwise