Steamed damson pudding

Name: Steamed damson pudding
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 2 h 20 min
Total time: 2 h 30 min
Yield: 4

Pudding & Cake Serves 4 2h 30 min

You can make this with endless varieties of fruit, jam and preserves. A little vanilla, orange zest or chopped stem ginger can be easily added to the pudding mix before steaming. Our damsons are grown in Joe Pardoe's organic orchards in Herefordshire. This cultivated variety is sweeter than its wild cousins, but they will still have a good sharpness to them. The sugar in this recipe balances this, but keeps some of the tartness that is key to their charm. If you still find them too sharp or sour, cook a little more sugar into them.

Cook's notes

This pudding works on an easily remembered formula - the amount of butter, sugar and flour is determined by the weight of the cracked eggs. Weigh the eggs and then use equal amounts of the other ingredients, simple!

Ingredients

400g damsons
40g light muscovado sugar
2 eggs
butter (approx. 100g - see Cook's notes)
caster sugar (approx. 100g)
self-raising flour (approx. 100g)
½ tsp baking powder
2 tbsp milk

Method

Prep time: 10 min

Cooking time: 2h 20 min

Step 1
Halve the damsons. Remove and discard the stones. Place them in a pan with the sugar and cook gently for 5 minutes, until the fruit has started to soften. Taste and add little more sugar if you want them sweeter.
Step 2
Grease the inside of a 1 litre pudding basin with butter. Put the damsons in the bottom and pop them in the fridge to cool completely.
Step 3
To make the pudding, crack the eggs into a bowl and weigh them. Now measure out separate amounts of butter, sugar and flour, each equal to the weight of the eggs.
Step 4
Cream the butter and sugar together, until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, making sure the first one is completely incorporated before adding the next. Sieve the flour and baking powder into the mix and fold it in as gently as you can. Add enough milk to give you a soft dropping consistency, about 2 tablespoons.
Step 5
Tip the pudding mix into the basin, on top of the damsons. Plate a pleated sheet of baking parchment on top, followed by a sheet of foil. Secure them tightly to the rim with string.
Step 6
Place the pudding basin in a large saucepan on a trivet, to stop it touching the base. Top up the pan with boiling water, enough to come two-thirds of the way up the side of the basin. Bring to a gentle boil and pop the lid on the pan. Steam the pudding for 2 hours, topping up with more boiling water every so often.
Step 7
Leave the pudding to sit for 20 minutes before turning it out. Serve warm with lashings of custard or double cream.

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