Rich Christmas Fruit Pudding Food

RICH CHRISTMAS FRUIT PUDDING

Steps:

• Chop fruit medley, raisins, figs and cherries. Combine in a large bowl with sultanas and currants, pour over brandy and mix well. Cover and stand overnight.
• Grease an 8 cup (2 litre) pudding basin and line the base with a small circle of baking paper.
• Beat butter and sugar until smooth and creamy (use electric mixer). Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in marmalade.
• Sift flour, spices and bicarb soda together. Fold into butter mixture with breadcrumbs, soaked fruit, nuts and choc bits.
• Spoon mixture into prepared pudding basin and smooth the top. Cover basin with baking paper and secure tightly with string. Cover with foil or basin lid. (If using foil, tie more string under the rim to secure, and then make a string handle over the top to make removal from pan easier).
• Place pudding basin on a trivet or upturned saucer in a large saucepan with enough boiling water to come halfway up the side of the basin. Cover pan and simmer for 4 hours - add more boiling water as necessary to maintain the water level.
• Remove basin from pan and cool. Cover and refrigerate pudding in the basin.
• Reheat (using same method as Step 6) for 2 hours. Turn onto a serving plate. Gently warm 1/4 cup brandy in a small saucepan. Using a long match, ignite brandy and CAREFULLY pour over the pudding.
• Alternatively, you can reheat individual slices in the microwave - a bonus if it's stinking hot or space on your stove-top is at a premium!

RICH BRANDY CHRISTMAS FRUITCAKE

Steps:

• The night before you cook this place all the fruit fruit peel and nuts into a bowl and soak for 12 hours in the brandy and orange juice; Stir every time you go into the kitchen!
• pre-heat oven to 275ºF/140ºC.
• Grease and line with greaseproof paper an 8 inch/20cm round cake tin.
• Sift the flour salt and spices into a large mixing bowl.
• In a separate bowl cream the butter and sugar together until the mixtures fluffy.
• Beat the eggs and add them a little at a time.
• Fold in the flour and spices.
• Stir in the fruit that has been soaking along with any excess liquid.
• Mix in the treacle.
• Spoon into the cake tin and spread out evenly.
• Cover the cake with a double square of greaseproof paper with a small hole in the top.
• Bake the cake on the lower shelf for 4& 1/4- 3/4 hours.
• When the cake is cold wrap in double greaseproof paper and store in an airtight tin.
• Feed the cake every two days for the first 2 weeks with a spoonful of brandy and/or orange juice and/or glacè cherry syrup.
• First poke little holes in the cake with a knitting needle or a skewer.
• Come Christmas you will have a very very rich fruit cake.
• Use royal icing to ice it or almond paste and royal icing, I don't like almond paste!

FRUIT PUDDING

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350, and while it preheats, place 1 stick of butter or margerine in a 9 X 13 or smaller deeper baking dish, in the oven until butter melts.(9x13 makes a nice size, but it comes out kind of thin.).
• Mix sugar, flour, baking powder, salt, and milk together, by hand until smooth.
• In pan with melted butter, add batter, making sure it covers most of the bottom of the pan.
• Drain fruit, and spoon on top of batter evenly, so batter is evenly covered with fruit.
• Bake at 350 for 40 minutes.