This was just lovely and worth the effort. I steamed it in pudding basin looking breakfast bowl in a normal saucepan with a lid on. I used some muslin in the greased bowl and plopped the mixture in then tied it over the top. I’m sure using some other materials like parchment paper and foil would work well too.
I made a lovely simple lemon sauce (from a wartime cook book) to pour over the top and I’ll post that recipe soon
Carrot and Sultana Pudding
- 6 tablespoons(UK size) self raising flour (or plain with 1/2 teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda)
- 1 carrot (grated)
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 3 tablespoons of sultanas
- pinch of salt
- 2 ozs chopped suet or hard fat (I used margarine and it was fine)
- milk to mix
- pinch of spice cinnamon and nutmeg
Mix all the dry ingredients thoroughly. Add the rest of the ingredients and the milk, mixing to a dropping consistency. Pour into a well-greased pudding bowl and steam 1 ½ to 2 hours.
OOh Carolyn…whoever said wartime diet was boring!…Iooking forward to the lemon sauce recipe..this one is going on the menu soon….yumyum x
It was yummy for sure! xx
Any jam or syrup can be used as a sauce either in a jug at the table or pored into the steaming bowl before the mixture goes in to be cooked – this changes the texture of the top (when you invert it out onto a plate) as it becomes even more delicious. A couple of pineapple rings, apricot halves or slices of apple are another option, it’s always worth experimenting with whatever you need to use up.
Ooo tasty, as I dropped my pud basin recently I shall try it in some individual pud pots and let you know the times.
You could use a stainless steel bowl and use foil as a lid, works for me.
have tried it and dumplings using half the amount of suet with either breadcrumbs or grated potato in its place. Was an old trick used by those ever so skilful war time cooks. I have the greatest respect for those ladies who coped with so much and still managed to put a swipe of red lipstick on and it was considered their duty to look well turned out.
Breadcrumbs can also be replaced with either pre-cooked barley (unsalted), whole oats, flaked rye or left over toast reduced to crumbs in a blender. Try raw pear, apple, quince, potato or pumpkin to replace some or all of the carrot. It’s amazing the flavour sensations you can create when you find something in the cupboard, fridge or garden that needs to be used.
This looks lovely and I look forward to the recipe for lemon sauce. I’ve seen a wartime method of steam cooking an entire meal together in one pot so that the use of fuel over 2 and1/2 hours isn’t profligate. Have you ever tried that or have you seen descriptions of this sort of cooking? Because I would think the only difficulty would be to time the separate components correctly. I’ve also seen it done at campsites, where you put a single pot on the fire to make a soup or stew and have the pudding on top acting almost as a lid.
I have a large oval slow cooker & 2 stainless steel bowls that fit nicely, side by side inside my slow cooker. I cook a savoury in one and a sweet in the other to feed two adults.
I actually have 3 slow cookers in total the 2 large round ones can take 1 large bowl or dish each so I can use those 2 together to cook for up to 8 adults. I place the filled dish in then top up with hot water to about 3/4 up the side of the filled dish or dishes. It really is that simple. I cook all sorts of things this way as it can be left to happily cook on low without the fear of burning.
This pud looks absolutely scrummy but I cannot imagine it is going to help me in the weight loss department….tish!
Used as an occasional after dinner yummy it is fine for someone who isn’t active – but for the active person – why not as a little of what you fancy does you good, as long as you only eat 1 portion of coarse.
This is a basic steam pudding recipe (from WW2, used by my mum and all 4 of her sisters, they all worked as canteen cooks during the war) that can be tinkered with to suit what you have in the cupboard or to hand:
1 cup sour milk (yogurt or buttermilk)
1 cup sugar (or down to 1/2 is still good, any kind but browns will “toffee” the flavour more))
1 cup breadcrumbs (makes it light but oatmeal works too)
1/2 cup any kind of neutral fat or oil you like
1 cup self raising flour (or 1 cup any plain flour with 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda)
1 cup any dried fruit (or 1/2 cup well drained tinned fruit, or grated apple and carrot, or *what ever you can find)
Beat altogether, pile into a bowl, cover and steam till firm and springy.
Try these flavour combinations, some sound odd but all work well:
Cocoa powder and grated beetroot
Cocoa powder and chopped prunes
Cocoa powder and choc chip
Walnut and dates
Walnut and coffee
Marmalade
Before cooking the puding you can put some syrup or jam in the bottom of the bowl with the mixture on top for a lovely sticky top to the pudding when turned out of the bowl.
Hi again, I have just thought of something to add to the above that applies to the canteen food served up in WW2. You don’t have any savoury versions of steam puddings on the site. I like to use left overs like bacon and black pudding, but the above one is easily adapted as follows:
1 cup sour milk (yogurt or buttermilk)
1 cup breadcrumbs (makes it light but oatmeal works too, also try dry toast)
1/2 cup any kind of fat or oil you like
1 cup self raising flour (or 1 cup any plain flour with 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda)
2 cups of any left overs (such as a sausage from breakfast, mince from dinner, odd bits of veggies, in other words what ever you can find)
1/2 tsp salt, if needed
Stir altogether, pile into a bowl, cover and steam till firm and springy.