Christmas Pudding (Flaming)

Written by on in Dessert

Do you watch A Christmas Carol every year and wonder what Mr. Cratchit was going on and on about Mrs. Crachit’s pudding being the best she’s ever made? Do you ever wonder why the chorus demands to be brought some figgy pudding right now? Then you have to try this traditional Christmas pudding. Make sure to light it aflame to wow your Christmas guests. (And yes, my husband said it was the best dessert I have ever made, so now it has to become a Christmas tradition – even if he won’t share!)

Christmas Pudding (Flaming)
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Christmas Pudding (Flaming)

Recipe by The Cooking LawyerCourse: DessertCuisine: EnglishDifficulty: Medium
Servings

8

servings
Prep time

1

hour 
Cooking time

1

hour 

30

minutes
Total time

2

hours 

30

minutes

Ingredients

  • 1.5 cups of raisins

  • 1/2 cup craisins

  • 1/2 cup mixed dried berries

  • 1/2 cup holiday cherries (dried fruit used in fruit cake)

  • Juice and zest of half a lemon

  • Juice and zest of half a orange

  • 1/4 cup of ale (I used Blue Moon)

  • 1 TBS brandy

  • 1 stick of frozen unsalted butter

  • 1/2 cup brown sugar or maple syrup

  • 2 eggs, beaten

  • Breadcrumbs made from 6 slices of bread toasted (I used Sara Lee light wheat bread which gave it the golden brown color)

  • 1/3 cup self-rising flour

  • 1/8 tsp cardamom

  • 1/8 tsp cloves

  • 1/8 tsp fresh grated nutmeg

  • 1 tsp cinnamon

  • 1/3 cup of chopped pecans

  • 1/4 cup Brandy (for flambe purposes)

  • Non-stick cooking spray

Directions

  • Night before instructions
  • In bowl with a lid combine, dried fruits, cherries, brandy, ale, citrus zest, and citrus juices. Place in refrigerator overnight.
  • Day of instructions
  • In large soup pot, add a metal steamer basket upside down so that it can act as a base for your pudding pan.
  • Add empty pudding pan into pot placing over the steamer basket. Add water so that level of water comes to the middle of the pudding pan.
  • Remove pudding pan from soup pot. Turn fire on so that the water can be brought to a boil. If it starts to boil while you are still assembling, set it to simmer.
  • Toast bread, and then add to food processor to create crumbs. (I use my Ninja blender).
  • In a mixing bowl, beat eggs with a whisk.
  • Add brown sugar (or syrup), and whisk with eggs.
  • Mix in flour and breadcrumbs.
  • Add chopped nuts, dried fruit mixture (from night before), and spices.
  • Grate frozen butter into bowl. Mix well.
  • Make sure your pudding pan is dry. Spray with non-stick cooking spray.
  • Add pudding to pudding pan. Securely fasten the lid to the pudding pan.
  • Wrap the pudding pan in parchment paper like a Christmas present with a tent on the top of the pan. Then add a layer of aluminum foil like a Christmas present again. Tie tightly with kitchen twine. Make sure you tie the string in a way that you can use tongs to fish out your pudding pan from the boiling water. The layers of wrapping and string will help avoid any water getting into your pudding pan while it steams in the simmering water.
  • Once the water is boiling, reduce heat to simmer if you did not do that yet. Add the pudding pot to the simmering water. Cover. Cook for 90 minutes.
  • Using tongs, fish out the pudding pan. Place on a cooling rack for ten minutes. Then remove the pudding lid and invert onto the serving plate. It should slide right out of the pan.
  • When about to serve the pudding, in a sauce pan, add 1/4 cup of brandy. Warm over a low heat – you don’t want to boil the alcohol, but warm brandy will burn better. If you have a candy thermometer, bring the alcohol to 130 degrees. It should begin to bubble but not boil.
  • To ignite your pudding, add brandy to the center of the pudding. Light the brandy and wow your guests. Warning – have a fire extinguisher nearby and don’t light near anything flammable like paper towels.

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