syrup sponge pudding

Serves 4

Preparation time 15 minutes

Cooking time 1 hour 30 minutes

butter, for greasing

75 ml (3 fl oz) golden syrup, plus extra to serve

175 g (6 oz) self-raising flour

75 g (3 oz) shredded vegetable or beef suet

50 g (2 oz) caster sugar

1 egg, beaten

100 ml (3½ fl oz) milk

Grease a 1 litre (1¾ pint) pudding basin and line the inside with a circle of greaseproof paper. Spoon the 75 ml (3 fl oz) golden syrup into the basin.

Mix together the flour, suet and sugar in a bowl. Stir in the egg and milk until thoroughly combined. Spoon the mixture into the basin and level the top.

Cover the basin with a double layer of baking parchment, securing around the rim with kitchen string. Cover with foil, scrunching it over the paper tightly to seal. Sit the pudding basin in the bowl of the halogen oven and pour in enough boiling water to come a third of the way up the side of the basin.

Set the temperature to 250°C (482°F) and steam the pudding for 1½–1¾ hours until the top of the pudding feels just firm to the touch and a knife inserted into the centre comes out clean. Leave in the basin for 5 minutes, then invert on to a serving plate and peel away the lining paper. Serve with warm vanilla custard (see page 220) and extra syrup for drizzling over.

For ginger spice pudding, line the basin as above, then add 75 ml (3 fl oz) ginger marmalade instead of the syrup. Finely chop 50 g (2 oz) preserved stem ginger from a jar. Make the pudding mixture as above, stirring the chopped stem ginger, 1 teaspoon ground mixed spice and 50 g (2 oz) sultanas into the dry ingredients. Turn into the basin and cook as above. Serve with crème fraîche.