Traditional Christmas Pudding (Figgy Pudding)

A traditional steamed Christmas Pudding is so much easier than you think!  And this one is even tastier -there's no candied peel and loads of flavour.  I've even added some fat juicy figs and made my pudding a Figgy Pudding!  Top it with a delicious homemade Vanilla Custard or Vanilla Bean Ice Cream for the ultimate Christmas Dessert

So you know Bing Crosby's "I wish you a merry Christmas" (it's the best!) and he sings "bring us some Figgy Pudding"?  Well I recently discovered that Figgy Pudding doesn't actually contain figs…but mine does!   And it's delicious!  This is a take on my Great Grandmother's original recipe for her traditional Christmas Pudding.  Hers was a boiled pudding that I would make every year and it just tasted like Christmas!  I wanted to make a steamed pudding version, as it's easier and I wanted to include Figs.  If you don't know, I recently became the very proud owner of a Maine Coon and named him Figgy, so there's about to be Fig everything popping up on the blog!

Meet Figgy, my Maine Coon Kitten

Anyway, this Figgy Pudding is absolutely amazing.  It's the Christmas Pudding recipe you'll come back to every year -I promise!  And it's so easy -you just mix it all together in a large bowl, let it soak overnight to do it's thing, then pop it into a pudding tin the next day and cook it on the stove.  You can make it months ahead and store it away if you want, but it's just as good if you make it the day before Christmas!

Why You Will Love This Recipe

• Ok, this Christmas pudding is super moist, rich and full of flavour
• All of the ingredients are mixed together in one bowl -just dump and mix
• It will last a long time!  I'm talking months in a cool spot.  Even up to year!
• Easy to re heat on Christmas day -either steamed for an hour, or simply 15 mins in the microwave
• Did I say there's no candied fruit peel?  That stuff is polarizing!
• It's an updated, but traditional recipe for Plum Pudding, Christmas Pudding or Figgy Pudding (even puddings have nicknames!) 
• You can use this recipe to make one large pudding to serve an army (ok 15-20 people), make 2 smaller puddings, so you have one for you and one for the in-laws, or a multitude of single serve puddings that can be served on the big day, or gifted.

 

Ingredients

• Suet: this is just beef fat that you buy from the butcher.  Usually comes grated (but you will need to finely grate it in the food processor).   This makes the pudding extremely moist and rich
• Breadcrumbs:  made in the food processor, using fresh or day-old bread
• Dried Fruit:  I've used raisins, sultanas and figs -delicious!
• Brown Sugar:  for golden caramel sweetness
• Zest:  orange and lemon zest (no need for chunks of peel)
• Nutmeg + Mixed Spice:  for festive vibes
• Salt:  to balance the sweetness
• Eggs:  free range preferred
• Brandy:  optional, but so good!
• Milk:  full cream

Substitutions and Additions

• Dried Fruit:  use a combination of your favourite dried fruits to make this Christmas Pudding your own!  Try cranberries, currants, apricots….just make sure you have some juicy fruits in the mix
• Brandy:  it's totally optional, but Brandy helps the pudding stay moist and acts as a preservative.  Feel free to swap it for Sherry, Whiskey, or even Orange or Lemon Juice.
• Spices:  if you love nutmeg, chuck some in!  Same with all spice.  You can even use your favourite Christmas spice blend, or try it with my Speculaas Spice Mix
• Pudding tin:  I use a 2 litre pudding tin, which will serve 15+ people, but feel free to swap it for 2 smaller tins.  The steaming time remains the same, but you can have one to serve and one to gift!

Step by Step Instructions

• In a food processor, grate your bread slices until they resemble soft, fat crumbs.   Add the crumbs to a large mixing bowl
• Now add the suet to your food processor and pulse it until it becomes fine crumbs.  Add that to the mixing bowl as well
• Now add the remaining ingredients and use a large wooden spoon to mix it all together.  Tradition is that, for good luck, each family member should stir the pudding mixture once and makes a wish.

• Cover the mixing bowl with plastic wrap and a tea towel, then put it somewhere cool overnight, or until you're ready to steam your pudding.

• Prepare your pudding basin or tin:
• Liberally brush the tin or a large pudding basin/bowl with melted butter
• Place a disc of baking parchment paper on the base of the tin (to prevent the pudding from sticking)

• Fill the pudding tin with the pudding mixture (I use 1 x 2 litre tin, which will serve between 15-20 people).  The mixture will fill the tin!

• Take a 30cm square each of baking paper and aluminium foil.   Brush the foil with melted butter, then place the baking paper on top of the foil.  Now fold a 5cm pleat across the centre of the foil and paper, to allow for expansion.  Place it on top of the pudding mixture (not too tight) and pinch around the sides of the tin, to secure it to the bowl.  If you are cooking your Christmas pudding in a pudding bowl or basin, you will need to secure the foil by tying a piece of string tightly around the rim of the bowl.  Place the pudding tin lid on top and click it into place

• Place a trivet in the bottom of a very large, deep saucepan and place the pudding tin on top of the trivet.  Add enough boiling water to the large pot, so that it comes up ⅔ of the pudding tin and creates a steam bath.  Pop on the pot lid. Note:  if making individual Christmas Puddings, you will need a wide, shallow pot with a lid and you will need to check the water level more often, to make sure you maintain enough water in the pot.

• Allow the pudding to simmer for 6 hours, checking and topping up the water level every hour to make sure it's still ⅔ up the side of the pudding.  I set a timer! For smaller puddings: If using 2 x 1litre pudding tins, steam them for 4 hours.  For mini puddings, you will only need 1.5 -2 hours
• Once cooked, remove the pudding and set it aside to cool.  I use a pudding tin with a loop on the lid -it's easy to hook the cooked pudding out of the hot water.
• When the pudding has cooled, remove it from the tin (use a butter knife along the sides if it's sticking)
• Wrap the cooked pudding tightly in plastic wrap, then 2 coats of foil and store it in a cool place until Christmas.  It can also be kept in the fridge or freezer for up to a year.

Re Heating Instructions:

• Stove top:  simple pop back into the large pot and add boiling water, the same as when you cooked it.  It will need 1 hour to heat it on Christmas Day
• Microwave:  wrapped in microwave-safe plastic wrap, then pierced a few times with a fork, it will take 15 minutes to re heat the whole pudding.  Individual slices can be heated for 1 minute, without plastic wrap

Serving Suggestions

• Christmas Centrepiece:  place the warm pudding on a cake stand and dust it with icing sugar
• Vanilla Custard:  always my favourite!  I make mine from scratch, because it's so quick and easy.  Feel free to use your own favourite custard though
• Vanilla Bean Ice Cream:  delicious if you're serving the pudding cold, but just as delicious with a hot pudding
• Brandy Sauce:  always served at a traditional Christmas lunch (i just pop a bit of brandy in my custard!)
• Leftovers:  you can store the leftover pudding in the freezer, then use it the next year to make my Christmas Pudding Truffles -genius!

Storage

• Room temperature: wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and foil, it will keep well in a cool, dark place
• Refrigerate:  it will keep for several months
• Freezer:  tightly wrapped, it will be good next year!

I hope my Figgy Pudding becomes a Christmas staple every holiday season in your home.  It's actually such a beautiful thing to make for your family -it's the ultimate food of love and hope, and it's my wish that you feel the same when you make it yourself

 If you try this recipe, I'd love it if you could  take a minute to leave a rating or review -it helps to get my recipes seen and for me to keep sharing them with you.