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Do you want to know how to make plum pudding? This traditional Christmas dessert is very simple to make. Inserting pudding charms turns dessert into a game, as everyone waits to see who will be lucky, who will get married, and who will have their wish come true in the coming year. read on to learn how to make plum pudding.
Plum pudding does not contain plums of any variety. It does contain bread crumbs, suet, dried fruits, spices, and brandy, however. If you don't want to use suet, you can substitute butter with very little loss of flavor or texture. make sure to plan ahead, as for best flavor, plum pudding should be made a few weeks before Christmas.
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Meaning of Traditional Pudding Charms
- Boot: Travel
- Bell: Good luck
- Wish bone: Wish will come true
- Thimble: Spinsterhood
- Ring: Marriage
- Horseshoe: Good luck
- Button: Good luck.
- Coin: Wealth
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Plum Pudding: Make the Plum-less Treat a Seasonal Tradition
This video provides some history and background about plum pudding. Although the expert on the video says you can't substitute for the suet, that's a personal opinion- many people find butter to be an acceptable substitute. She also uses bourbon instead of brandy to preserve her plum pudding- which makes it more of an American plum pudding than a traditional English plum pudding.
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Step 1: What You Need for Plum Pudding
Plum Pudding Ingredients
- Butter to grease the pudding mold
- 10 slices firm white bread
- 1 cup hot milk
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 4 eggs, separated
- 1 1/3 cups raisins, lightly floured
- 1/2 cup dried figs, finely chopped
- 3 tablespoons citron, finely chopped
- 3/4 cup suet, finely chopped
- 3 tablespoons brandy
- 1 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon cloves
- 1/4 teaspoon mace
- 1 teaspoon salt
- Additional brandy for storage
Plum Pudding Equipment
- 2 quart pudding mold
- Large pot with rack
- Linen kitchen towel
- Pudding charms or several coins
- Waxed paper
Step 2: How to Make Plum Pudding
- Wrap the pudding charms or coins in waxed paper.
- Butter the pudding mold and set aside.
- Heat the water in the pot.
- Crumb the bread, soak it in the hot milk, and allow to cool to room temperature.
- Whip egg whites until stiff.
- Add the egg yolks, raisins, figs, and citron to the bread and milk.
- Cream the suet, then add to the bread and milk.
- Add the brandy and spices.
- Fold in the egg yolks.
- Spoon the batter into the pudding mold.
- Insert the charms into the pudding if you're baking them in. (Some people tie ribbons on the charms and insert them after baking to make it easier to find them.)
- Place the pudding on the rack in the pot, making sure that the water level is about half way up the pot.
- Steam for 6 hours.
- Allow to cool for 10 minutes, then remove from the mold, and cool completely.
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