For years now I’ve been making Jamie’s Nan’s Christmas Pudding. I got the recipe from a Jamie Christmas DVD I have, which differs slightly in that there are no nuts, cranberries replace 100g of the mixed fruit, and I’m fairly sure it’s 125g breadcrumbs, not 150g. Every year I make my own little differences too, cointreau instead of brandy (generally because we’ve run out of brandy), using glacé cherries instead of cranberries etc. all with good results.
This year I’ve gone totally off piste. Firstly, I decided to attempt a wrapped pudding instead of using the pudding bowl, and used a cheesecloth bag, which wasn’t so successful as the pudding stuck and the bag has now been thrown away. Secondly I went for wholemeal breadcrumbs instead of white (why? To make it more healthy? It’s going to be covered in custard and/or cream and/or sugar! Not sure what I was thinking there…), I added in apple and dried apricots, I left out dates because I couldn’t be bothered to buy them and cut them up (expensive, and very sticky) and I lost count when adding fruit so may well have ended up about 50-100g more fruit that needed. But that’s ok because I added an obscene amount of ginger and ginger syrup. It tastes more like bread pudding that Christmas pudding… although it could have been any of the additions, I blame the lack of dates. I don’t think the dates were optional…
im impressed you even make a pud yourself. I hate the stuff myself but i would always just buy one rather than go to the trouble. I vaguely remember hearing that you need to flour the cheezecloth prior to putting the goop in it or it will stick.
Delayed reply but you might like my pudding (the normal one, not this date-free ginger-infused bread pudding version); it tastes nothing like shop bought Christmas pud. I will make you one.