the
mistress'
own
plum
pudding

Place the raisins, sultanas, candied peel, glacé ginger, cherries, dates and into a large bowl. Add the orange and lemon zest and strain the juice onto the fruit. Grate the nutmeg into the bowl and add the cinnamon and mixed spice. Add the cognac and the stout; mix well, cover with plastic and allow to stand in a cool place for at least five hours or preferably overnight. 

Tear up the bread and add the flour and process in the food processor until very fine. With the motor running add the chilled suet and process until you have what resembles very fine breadcrumbs – add to the fruit and mix well. Process the carrot and apple in a food processor until it is fine then add to the fruit mix. Put the eggs into the bowl of your electric mixer with the balloon whisk attached. Whisk until they start to foam, add the sugar and whisk until thick and fluffy. Add to the fruit, mix well cover and allow to rest in a cool place overnight. This can also be refrigerated for a couple of days…basically you need the moisture to be pretty much absorbed by the fruit.

My Grandmother used to lard and flour the pudding cloths and put the pudding straight into the cloth but if this isn’t done fastidiously is can lead to a poor result. I prefer to either cook the puddings in floured and buttered pudding bowls that are then wrapped in cloth and tied up or line a cloth with baking parchment and tie up…the latter being my most often used method because I like the traditional shape and make many varying sizes as Christmas gifts.

The old-fashioned way to cook the puddings was to put about 15cm of water into a large saucepan and put a bread and butter plate upside down on the bottom and boil them, but this is dangerous as it can easily boil dry. I prefer to use a steamer and I set a timer to regularly check the water level. Steam small puddings for two hours, large for four.