Wednesday, December 7, 2011

Festive preparations

Yesterday when chatting to my youngest daughter she let slip that the schools would see breaking up at the end next week,which panicked me, but thinking about it I have more time this year than I have had previously so I'm sure we will be ok but old habits die hard! Anyway I got to thinking that I haven't even made the Christmas pudding yet so I think that is what I should make today. The recipe I have used the last few years is one I have adapted a little from Phil Vickery the chef who appears on Good Morning tv show. The recipe is light , suitable for vegetarians, I can use our homegrown carrots, apples and eggs but more importantly I like to use it as my daughter met the chef when she was smaller. So here is the recipe I use:

Golden Christmas pudding serves 4-6

110g raisins
75g sultanas
1 small apple grated
1 small carrot grated (use a fine grater otherwise you will see largish orange specks in the finished product)
175ml cider
50g runny honey
50g fresh breadcrumbs
50g soft brown sugar
50g chopped dried figs
50g pine nuts ( we leave this out and use more dried fruit instead)
50g chopped dates
50g currants
50g olive oil
50g candied fruit chopped (optional)
35g flaked almonds( again we leave this out and add some different dried fruit)
2 tsp mixed spice
3 medium eggs beaten
Pinch of salt
Soak all the fruit and carrot in cider overnight (or for over 8 hours) Next day mix well and add the rest of the ingredients. Mix well and pack into a 2lb pudding basin. Cover with grease proof paper and foil and secure well using string, making a handle to ease removal from the steamer. Steam for 4 hours. Remove and leave to cool. Take off foil and leave somewhere cool until Christmas day. When it should be recovered in foil and steamed again for four hours.

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