British Christmas Pudding Recipe
Prep Time:
1 hour, 20 minutes
Cook Time:
8 hours
Servings:
20 Servings
Ingredients
  • 2 ¾ cups dried mixed fruit
  • 2 tablespoons candied citrus peel
  • 1 small cooking apple, peeled, cored and finely chopped
  • 1 tablespoon orange juice
  • 8 tablespoons brandy, divided
  • ½ cup + 1 tablespoon suet (can use lard or vegetable shortening)
  • ¾ cup brown sugar
  • 2 large eggs, room temperature
  • ¾ cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon mixed spice (can use pumpkin pie spice)
  • 1 cup fresh white breadcrumbs
  • 1 tablespoon orange zest
  • ⅓ cup pecans
  • ⅓ cup unsalted butter, softened
  • 3 tablespoons confectioner's sugar
Directions
  1. Soak the mixed fruit, citrus peel, and chopped apple in the orange juice and 3 tablespoons of brandy until the liquid is absorbed, about 1 hour.
  2. Beat the brown sugar with the suet, then add in the eggs.
  3. Sift together the flour, baking powder, and mixed spice.
  4. Fold the flour mixture into the sugar and suet.
  5. Stir in the breadcrumbs, soaked fruits, orange zest, and pecans until well combined.
  6. Generously butter a 6-cup pudding basin and fill it with the cake batter.
  7. Cut a circle of paper large enough to sit on top of the batter and fold a small pleat into it so that the pudding has room to grow.
  8. Place the paper circle on top of the pudding batter, and cover the top of the basin with two layers of aluminum foil.
  9. Tie butcher's twine around the pudding basin to hold the aluminum foil in place.
  10. Make a handle for the pudding out of a second piece of twine that passes across the top of the pudding and is attached at both ends to the string encircling the basin.
  11. Place a trivet into a large saucepan (you can use a slightly smaller pot lid to serve this purpose).
  12. Set the pudding on the trivet, then pour boiling water into the saucepan until it reaches halfway up the side of the basin.
  13. Cover the saucepan with a lid (you can use aluminum foil), and simmer for 8 hours, topping up the water as needed.
  14. While the pudding is cooking, mix the butter and the confectioner's sugar, then stir in 2 tablespoons of brandy. Refrigerate the brandy butter.
  15. After the pudding has steamed for 8 hours, remove it from the saucepan using the string handle.
  16. Let the pudding cool completely before removing it from the basin by turning it upside down onto a plate.
  17. Heat the remaining brandy in a saucepan. When the brandy is warm, tip the pan slightly to the side and light the alcohol using a long match or lighter.
  18. Slowly pour the lit brandy over the Christmas pudding and let the fire burn out.
  19. Slice the Christmas pudding and serve with the chilled brandy butter.