Lake trout with potato risotto
After spectacular culinary journeys across the world’s oceans, Lukas Nagl has found his home port...
Christmas "Bridgerton" pudding
Christmas like the Bridgertons? This recipe adds a touch of Regency elegance to your festive dining table.
Tradition calls for preparations to begin on “Stir-up Sunday,” the last Sunday before Advent, when families traditionally make their Christmas pudding. On this day, the younger Bridgertons take turns stirring the pudding mixture — each one making a wish and slipping in tiny trinkets meant to bring luck to whoever discovers them at the dinner table. Lady Violet cherishes this ritual and the joyful chaos that comes with it, as the kitchen briefly becomes the children’s domain.
When made this early, the pudding has ample time to mature, allowing its flavors to deepen beautifully. Thanks to more modern habits, however, a perfectly delicious version can also be prepared in just 24 hours. The combination of tallow and alcohol acts as a natural preservative, producing a dark, sticky pudding with rich, concentrated fruity notes.
Ingredients: plum pudding
| Ingredients (10 servings) | ||
|---|---|---|
| 80 | g | Dried currants or currants |
| 80 | g | Dried peaches, finely chopped |
| 80 | g | Raisins, finely chopped |
| 5 | Large pitted Medjool dates, finely chopped | |
| Zest and juice of 1 organic orange (navel) | ||
| 100 | ml | Brandy or cognac, plus more for drizzling |
| 30 | g | Ground beef tallow, room temperature |
| 55 | g | Butter, room temperature, plus more for greasing |
| 110 | g | Muscovado sugar |
| 1/2 | teaspoon(s) | Ground cinnamon |
| 1/4 | teaspoon(s) | Ground cloves |
| 1/4 | teaspoon(s) | Ground ginger |
| 1/4 | teaspoon(s) | Ground allspice |
| 1/4 | teaspoon(s) | Freshly grated nutmeg |
| 1/4 | teaspoon(s) | Mace |
| Salt | ||
| 2 | Eggs (size L) | |
| 65 | g | Flour (type 550), sieved |
| 60 | g | Light breadcrumbs |
| 40 | g | Candied pineapple, finely chopped |
| 40 | g | Candied orange peel, finely chopped |
| 60 | g | Grated apple (e.g. Honeycrunch or Fuji) |
- Mix the dried fruit with the orange zest and juice in a medium bowl. Douse it with the required amount of brandy, cover the bowl and let everything soak overnight at room temperature.
- Mix the tallow, butter, sugar, spices and 1⁄4 tsp salt in another bowl with an electric hand mixer at high speed for 3 minutes. The mixture should become lighter and fluffy with time. Add the eggs one at a time. Switch off the appliance occasionally and scrape the sides of the bowl downwards.
- Using a rubber spatula, fold in the flour until all ingredients are mixed together well. Fold in the breadcrumbs as well. Thoroughly stir in the fruit soaked in brandy, candied pineapple, candied orange peel and grated apple until smooth.
- Grease the pudding dish (or another ceramic dish with a diameter of 17 cm and a height of 10 cm) with a little butter. Cut a suitable piece of baking paper for the base and place in the tin. Grease it as well.
- Place a heatproof trivet (e.g. made of metal) or an inverted, shallow ovenproof bowl in a large saucepan with a suitable lid (the saucepan must be able to hold the pudding mold on the trivet so that the lid still closes tightly).
- Spoon the pudding mixture into the mold. Cut a piece of baking paper so that it fits on top of the mixture. Grease one side of the paper. Press the butter side down onto the pudding. Place another layer of baking paper on top, followed by aluminum foil and press firmly around the edges. Fasten the pudding mold and cover with kitchen string.
- Place the mold on the trivet and pour in enough water to cover half of the pudding mold. With the lid on, bring the water to a boil at a medium temperature (duration depends on the size of the pan). Reduce the temperature to low and leave the pudding to set for 6 hours. The water level should always remain the same. Heat and add water as needed. Cover the pudding and insert a toothpick or skewer into the center to test if done. If it comes out clean, the pudding is done. Otherwise continue damping.
- Remove the pudding dish from the pan and leave to cool slightly. After 20-30 minutes, when it is cool enough to touch, remove the aluminum foil and baking paper. Place a large serving plate on top of the pudding and turn out the mold. If that does not work, use your fingers to get it out of the mold.
- This pudding also tastes delicious if you eat it straight away. Traditionally, however, it is prepared several weeks in advance so that its flavors can develop fully. Slide the pudding back into the mold and seal the top tightly with cling film. Allow to infuse in a cold, dry place for about 6 weeks, sprinkling with brandy once a week.
- Poke holes in the pudding and spread 1-2 tablespoons of brandy on top. It saturates the pudding and gives it a little oomph. Cover with new cling film; repeat every week.
- For a warm plum pudding, remove the cling film and heat the pudding in its mold in 30-second intervals in the microwave. Or heat in the same way as the pudding was cooked, but only steam until the pudding is warm.
- Remove from the mold as described and turn out onto a serving plate.
Ingredients: bay leaf pudding sauce
| Ingredients (10 servings) | ||
|---|---|---|
| 240 | g | Confectioner's cream (35 % fat) |
| 120 | ml | Milk |
| 2 | Bay leaves | |
| 4 | Egg yolk (size L) | |
| 3 | tablespoon(s) | Sugar |
- Mix the cream, milk, and bay leaves in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, then take it off the stove. Set a fine-mesh sieve over a medium bowl.
-
In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks and sugar for 2–3 minutes, until the mixture thickens and becomes fluffy (beat it until soft peaks emerge). Slowly pour the warmed up cream into the yolk mixture, whisking constantly. Return everything to the saucepan and cook over medium-low heat. Stir continuously for 2–5 minutes, until the sauce thickens and coats the back of a spoon (the thermometer should read 76-82 °C). Strain the sauce immediately and discard the bay leaves.
- Serve the warm plum pudding with the bay leaf pudding sauce.
Aids
| Ingredients (10 servings) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Ceramic pudding dish (approx. 1 l capacity), microwave-safe | ||
Tip from the kitchen
From today's perspective, beef tallow may seem like a strange ingredient, but until the invention of baking powder in the middle of the 19th century, bakeries used tallow - beef fat rendered from kidneys - instead of butter when preparing puddings. When heated, air holes form in the sebum, which create a sponge-like texture and take away the heaviness. This is why tallow is used here. Ask for fresh tallow in the butcher's shop and grate it or buy already grated tallow as a ready-made product. If you cannot find this ingredient, use 55 g of butter for a similar result.
The Official Bridgerton Cookbook
Regula Ysewijn
Random House Worlds, 2024
256 Seiten
14,88 Euro
ISBN 9780593725573
