Steamed Cranberry Pudding
Submitted by VLee
Steamed cranberry pudding, a brighter take on Christmas pudding: tart cranberries, walnuts, and apricots in a suet batter, steamed moist and served warm with caramel or hard sauce. A festive holiday dessert.
YIELD
12 servingsPREP
15 minCOOK
2 hrsREADY
2 hrsA festive steamed pudding with a brighter, tangier personality than the usual dried-fruit Christmas pud. Fresh cranberries bring a tart pop that cuts through the richness, alongside chopped walnuts and dried apricots, all in a moist, suet-based batter scented with almond.
There is a small trick worth following: the cranberries, walnuts, and apricots get dredged in flour before they go into the batter, which keeps them suspended throughout the pudding instead of sinking to the bottom. Brown sugar and breadcrumbs give it that classic dense, tender steamed-pudding crumb.
The molds steam gently in a pot of simmering water for a couple of hours, which is what keeps the pudding so moist. Turn it out hot and serve with caramel, almond, or hard sauce, and a splash of apricot brandy in the hard sauce is a lovely touch.
Pro Tips
- Dredge the fruit and nuts in flour before folding them in, so they stay suspended rather than sinking to the bottom.
- Fill the molds no more than three-quarters full to leave room for the pudding to rise.
- Keep the water at a gentle simmer, not a hard boil, and top it up with boiling water so it never runs dry.
- The pudding is done when the top is no longer sticky; let it rest 5 minutes before turning out.
Variations
- Steam in one large mold or several small ones, adjusting the time as needed.
- Swap the walnuts for pecans, or the apricots for chopped dates or raisins.
- Make it ahead and re-steam to reheat, since steamed puddings keep well.
Ingredients
Directions
Grease two 1 quart moulds and sprinkle with granulated sugar.
Combine the cranberries, walnuts and apricots and dredge with ¼ cup of the flour.
Sift the remaining flour, baking powder and salt together.
Combine with the bread crumbs.
Beat together the brown sugar, suet and eggs.
Add the dry ingredients alternately with the milk to the suet mixure.
Stir in the almond extract and the floured fruit and walnuts, combining well.
Turn the batter into the prepared moulds.
The moulds should be no more than three-quarters full.
Cover with a double thickness of wax paper and foil and tie securely with string.
Place on a rack in a large pot.
Pour boiling water around the moulds to two-thirds of the way up the moulds.
Cover tightly and steam for 2 to 2½ hours, or until the top of the pudding is no longer sticky.
Add more boiling water if necessary during this time, but make sure the water just simmers in the pan as the pudding steams.
Remove the moulds from the water.
Let the pudding set in the moulds for about 5 minutes, then turn out onto a warm platter and serve hot with Caramel Sauce, Almond Sauce or Hard Sauce.
If you are using Hard Sauce, try substituting 2 tbls. apricot brandy for the flavouring.
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