Sticky ginger pear pudding
By Jane Hornby
Cooking time
Prep: 20 mins Cook: 1 hr, 30 minsSkill level
Moderately easyServings
Serves 8A great last-minute alternative to a traditional Christmas pudding - plus it reheats in only five minutes
Nutrition and extra info
Additional info
- Freezable
Nutrition per serving
- kcalories
- 457
- protein
- 4g
- carbs
- 79g
- fat
- 13g
- saturates
- 8g
- fibre
- 0g
- sugar
- 62g
- salt
- 0.99g
Ingredients
- 85g golden syrup
- 175g dark muscovado sugar, plus 1 tsp extra
- 150ml milk
- 100g butter, plus lots extra for greasing
- 175g self-raising flour
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 2 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 6 balls stem ginger from a jar
- 2 ripe pears, peeled
- 1 egg
- custard, to serve
For the ginger brandy syrup
- 50ml syrup from the ginger jar
- 100ml brandy
- 85g dark muscovado sugar
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Method
- Put the syrup, sugar and milk into a saucepan, then bring to a simmer to dissolve. Leave to cool almost completely while you get on with everything else. Heat oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4.
- Put the butter, flour, bicarb, ground ginger and cinnamon into a food processor, then pulse until it forms fine crumbs. Generously butter a 1.4-litre pudding basin and sprinkle 1 tsp sugar into the bottom. Cut 3 of the ginger balls in half and put 5 halves, rounded-side down, into the bottom, like the points of a star. Cut one cheek from a pear, then slice through about 10 times, without cutting through the stalk end. Put this into the bottom of the bowl amongst the ginger, then press gently so that the pear fans out. Core, then thinly slice the remaining pear. Finely chop the rest of the ginger.
- Tip the cooled syrup mix and egg into a food processor, then quickly whizz with the dry ingredients to a batter. Take out the blade, then stir in the chopped ginger and sliced pear. Scrape the mix into the basin, then bake for 1 hr 20 mins until risen and dark golden, and a skewer comes out clean. Whatever you do, don’t open the oven before 45 mins is up.
- To finish, gently melt the syrup ingredients in a pan together until the sugar dissolves, then boil briefly. Turn the pudding out of its basin just before serving, spoon over the syrup and serve with custard.
Recipe from Good Food magazine, January 2009
Comments, questions and tips
Comments
I made this as an alternative for Christmas pudding. It was moist, light and tasted absolutely beautiful. The only thing I would say is that the recipie did not mention covering the pudding whilst in the oven and the top (bottom when it is turned out) was on the verge of being burnt. I would recommend covering with foil for at least part of the cooking time.
Mine sank a bit in the middle but I think that was because my basin was a bit smaller than it should have been and it overflowed a little when cooking. However it re-heated to a light, fragrant,gooey perfection and was much enjoyed by everyone with some thick pouring cream. Only 'negative' was that some of the ginger pieces on the top were perhaps a bit big and chewy but this did not detract from its gorgeousness - will definitely be making agin over the Xmas period !
This recipe is amazing. It is light, mellow and truly yummy. I'm not really a Christmas Pudding afectionado, so I made this last year instead. It does have a lot of ginger in the recipe, but is mellow with it - my mother professes not to like ginger, but we caught her sneaking back for more! It is also very light. Perfect for after Christmas. Easy to transport as a gift or for a party. I served it with a dribble of cream rather than custard.
This was *amazing*!
I was asked to bring a dessert for my family's Christmas lunch - I made this up a couple of days before hand, and it was then eaten on Boxing Day, with the anticipation that some would be left over. The whole lot disappeared!
It didn't need custard - we served with single cream.
Will definitely be making again.
A beautiful pud! I made this for a News Year Day family dinner and everyone loved it. I probably would not put as much brandy in the sauce next time as we felt is was quite over powering! I agree with other comments that this was equally if not better after a couple of days - what was left! An ideal winter dinner party pudding.
Hi there everyone - and quickcookmum in particular. I haven't made this pudding in the microwave, but I have too made sponge puds and Christmas puddings in the microwave before. The pud won't be as golden and gorgeous as it appears in the shot above though...
I think that if you place the pudding on a plate and microwave on Medium (not high, I think that will burn the outside before the middle is done) for 15 mins it should be about right - if you can see that the middle starts to sink down a lot once the oven stops, put it on for another few mins. Once you're more or less certain it's set in the middle, give it a test with a skewer - if it comes out clean then it's ready. Leave to stand for 5 mins before you serve. Hope this is successful - let me know how you get on!