INGREDIENTS
For the pudding
50 g almonds, blanched, 2 large apples, 150 g candied orange peel, 1 nutmeg, 2 tsp mixed-spice powder, 50 g raisins, chopped, 2 tbsp brandy or cognac (add approx 30 ml more for the flambé), 100 g brown sugar, 250 g butter, just out of the refrigerator, 3 large eggs, 1 tsp vanilla essence, 140 g plain flour, 100 g soft, fresh white breadcrumbs berries, for garnish
For the brandy-and-ginger-butter sauce
175 g softened, unsalted butter, 5 tbsp icing sugar, zest of half an orange, 2 pieces of stem ginger, finely chopped, 40 ml heavy cream, 4 tbsp brandy or cognac
METHOD
• Chop the almonds coarsely. Peel, core and chop the apples. Chop the candied peel. (While you may run the almonds and apples in a food processor, chop the peel by hand.) Powder the nutmeg.
• To prepare the mixed-fruit ingredients, mix the almonds, apple, candied peel, mixed-spice powder, nutmeg powder, raisins and the brandy or cognac together. The mixed-fruit ingredients are ready.
• Cream the brown sugar and butter together. Break the eggs in the bowl and add to it the vanilla essence.
• Stir the above mixture well, and add in the mixed-fruit ingredients and the flour and breadcrumbs. Mix again.
• Pour the above into the desired container and bake it in a double-boiler in an oven, at 180°C, for 25–30 minutes. Check if cooked, or keep it on for another 15 minutes until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean.
• Once done, take it off the oven. Dust it with powdered sugar and garnish with berries. Serve with brandy-and-ginger butter sauce as accompaniment.
Making the brandy-and-ginger-butter sauce
• Mix the butter, sugar, orange zest and ginger together in a bowl and let it cook.
• Heat the cream separately in a microwave oven for 30 seconds on medium heat
and add to the above.
• Then, take the sauce off the heat; slowly add in the brandy and mix well.
• The brandy-and-ginger-butter sauce is ready.
Note: Pour the brandy-and-ginger butter sauce over the Christmas pudding.
