Get ready for Christmas
Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 9:01 amMelbourne Cup day is the traditional time in my family to make Christmas pudding and bake Christmas cake.
I thought I would share some old family recipes for those who may be interested. The measures are all imperial, sorry, I've never bothered to convert them. <shrug>
Christmas Pudding
8 oz Butter
8 oz Brown Sugar
4 eggs (61g)
8 oz Seeded Raisins Pinch Salt
8 oz Currants
8 oz Sultanas
2 oz Blanched Almonds
4 oz Plain Flour
4 oz Soft White Breadcrumbs*
¼ Teaspoon Carb Soda
¼ Teaspoon Mixed Spice
3 Tablespoons Brandy (6 tbsp is good) - I use Bundy OP
¼ Teaspoon Ground Nutmeg
2 oz Candied Peel
Extra butter to grease basin
Glad Bake (baking paper)
Aluminium foil
Cotton string\
Clean fruit, chop almonds & put with the brandy overnight. Prepare a large pudding basin (see below) by greasing well with butter, cut a circle of Glad Bake and put in the bottom.
Cream the butter and sugar until light. Beat the eggs lightly and add gradually to mixture, beating well after each addition. Add prepared fruit, almonds, peel and brandy, stirring until evenly mixed. Add breadcrumbs and sifted flour, salt, spice and nutmeg. Mix thoroughly and pour into basin allowing a little space for rising (about ½ an inch or so).
Cover with two thicknesses of Glad Bake and then two of Aluminium foil, folding down over the sides of the bowl. Tie securely under the rim of the pudding basin using cotton string, forming a handle over the top (this also helps keep the string in place.) Place in a steamer and steam for 6 hours. Can also be put directly in boiling water, but keep the water up to at least half way or more throughout cooking - but not over the top of the basin. Alternatively, put a trivet in the bottom of a crock pot or slow cooker, half fill with hot water and cook on high for 10-12 hours (this method is excellent).
Steam a further two hours on the day of serving (or 5+ hours in the crockpot on high). When ready to serve, heat 1/3 cup of brandy set alight and pour while burning over the pudding. Serve with brandy custard and King Island cream.
Store in the refrigerator.
* make the bread crumbs from 2 day old white bread, cut the crusts off and turn into breadcrumbs in a food processor or blender, if using a blender do it in small batchess
P.S. Use traditional china or stoneware pudding basin available at most kitchen or hardware stores - size required would be about 8” or 20 cm across the top.
Note: This recipe was the old family recipe of an old Scottish lady that was a friend of my grandmother’s. She gave Nana the recipe in the 1930’s. It is at least 100 years old.
Christmas Cake - 20 cm (7") Cake
8 oz White Sugar
8 oz Butter
10 oz Plain Flour
1 lb Sultanas
8 oz Currants
2 oz Raisins
4 oz Mixed Peel
20 oz Glacè (or crystallised) Ginger
2 oz Glacè Cherries
2 oz Dried Dates
4 oz Mixed Nuts (Almonds, Walnuts, Brazils, Hazelnuts)
Pinch Salt
¼ tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Mixed Spice
4 eggs (61g)
¼ cup Milk
¼ tsp Nutmeg
½ cup Rum (Bundaberg OP Rum is best)
Extra Rum
This was my great grandfather's recipe who was a baker in the Southern Tablelands of NSW in the earl;y part of last century. It is yummy!
I thought I would share some old family recipes for those who may be interested. The measures are all imperial, sorry, I've never bothered to convert them. <shrug>
Christmas Pudding
8 oz Butter
8 oz Brown Sugar
4 eggs (61g)
8 oz Seeded Raisins Pinch Salt
8 oz Currants
8 oz Sultanas
2 oz Blanched Almonds
4 oz Plain Flour
4 oz Soft White Breadcrumbs*
¼ Teaspoon Carb Soda
¼ Teaspoon Mixed Spice
3 Tablespoons Brandy (6 tbsp is good) - I use Bundy OP
¼ Teaspoon Ground Nutmeg
2 oz Candied Peel
Extra butter to grease basin
Glad Bake (baking paper)
Aluminium foil
Cotton string\
Clean fruit, chop almonds & put with the brandy overnight. Prepare a large pudding basin (see below) by greasing well with butter, cut a circle of Glad Bake and put in the bottom.
Cream the butter and sugar until light. Beat the eggs lightly and add gradually to mixture, beating well after each addition. Add prepared fruit, almonds, peel and brandy, stirring until evenly mixed. Add breadcrumbs and sifted flour, salt, spice and nutmeg. Mix thoroughly and pour into basin allowing a little space for rising (about ½ an inch or so).
Cover with two thicknesses of Glad Bake and then two of Aluminium foil, folding down over the sides of the bowl. Tie securely under the rim of the pudding basin using cotton string, forming a handle over the top (this also helps keep the string in place.) Place in a steamer and steam for 6 hours. Can also be put directly in boiling water, but keep the water up to at least half way or more throughout cooking - but not over the top of the basin. Alternatively, put a trivet in the bottom of a crock pot or slow cooker, half fill with hot water and cook on high for 10-12 hours (this method is excellent).
Steam a further two hours on the day of serving (or 5+ hours in the crockpot on high). When ready to serve, heat 1/3 cup of brandy set alight and pour while burning over the pudding. Serve with brandy custard and King Island cream.
Store in the refrigerator.
* make the bread crumbs from 2 day old white bread, cut the crusts off and turn into breadcrumbs in a food processor or blender, if using a blender do it in small batchess
P.S. Use traditional china or stoneware pudding basin available at most kitchen or hardware stores - size required would be about 8” or 20 cm across the top.
Note: This recipe was the old family recipe of an old Scottish lady that was a friend of my grandmother’s. She gave Nana the recipe in the 1930’s. It is at least 100 years old.
Christmas Cake - 20 cm (7") Cake
8 oz White Sugar
8 oz Butter
10 oz Plain Flour
1 lb Sultanas
8 oz Currants
2 oz Raisins
4 oz Mixed Peel
20 oz Glacè (or crystallised) Ginger
2 oz Glacè Cherries
2 oz Dried Dates
4 oz Mixed Nuts (Almonds, Walnuts, Brazils, Hazelnuts)
Pinch Salt
¼ tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Mixed Spice
4 eggs (61g)
¼ cup Milk
¼ tsp Nutmeg
½ cup Rum (Bundaberg OP Rum is best)
Extra Rum
- Clean fruit, chop nuts roughly and soak for at least 24 hours in the rum, in an air-tight container (eg Tupperware)
- Grease and double line the cake tin with Glad Bake
- Using electric beaters, cream the softened butter and sugar together until light and creamy
- Add whole eggs, one at a time and then the milk
- Add the fruit and stir well, then the sifted flour and dry ingredients. Mix well.
- Pour into prepared tin and bake at 140ºC for 2½ to 3 hours, until a cake tester (or skewer) inserted into middle of cake comes out clean.
- Remove from oven and sprinkle liberally with extra rum.
- Wrap in tea towel, still in tin, then several thicknesses of newspaper and leave until completely cold - 24 hours.
- Remove from tin and wrap in foil and store in an airtight container (eg Tupperware) and keep for at least 2 weeks before cutting.
This was my great grandfather's recipe who was a baker in the Southern Tablelands of NSW in the earl;y part of last century. It is yummy!