Handmade Christmas Puddings

Festive baking is a joy and many people especially enjoy both making and eating the traditional plum pudding, which is a very appealing hot dessert throughout the colder months.

Artisan producers offer good alternatives for anyone who hasn’t time to make their puddings and some outstanding traditional examples to look out for in Ireland include Seerys (+353 (0)59 9142461 www.seerys.ie) of Tinryland, Co Carlow, who have earned an international reputation for their traditional Irish fruit cakes and puddings, notably Christmas specialities products, and those made at at Florrie Purcell’s The Scullery (+353 (0)86 174 4402), of Nenagh, Co Tipperary who include individual Christmas puddings in their often-praised traditional range.

More unusually, Arun Kapil’s Green Saffron Christmas Pudding is made in Midleton, Co Cork, home to Ireland’s most famous family-run spice business.

Country Choice of Nenagh, Co Tipperary are renowned for many things including the range and quality of their baking ingredients (also available in their shop, see In Season), and have earned a great reputation for their Christmas puddings.

Each year Peter and Mary Ward mix over a thousand puddings by hand, to avoid damaging the texture of the fruit:

“At Country Choice each evening in the dark days of November and December, we make tons of Christmas puddings in our kitchen behind our shop in Kenyon Street in Nenagh. We make all our traditional puddings by hand in our kitchen sink without the use of electric mixers etc.” explains Peter.

“We use the best fruit in the world from Malaga muscatel raisins to whole peel from Catalayud in Spain, to glacé apricots and melons. We use local organic carrots, Nenagh butter and free range eggs from Mrs. Mooney in Roscrea.

We are very particular with the texture of our puddings and we make sure not to boil the fresh fruit flavour out of them. Our Christmas puddings taste of orange and lemon and butter and fruit. We post them all over the world for our customers as gifts.”

(Available from the shop in Nenagh, and online from their website, where you can also see details of the particular fruits used.)

This version of the Traditional Christmas Pudding is a favourite in my own family. Quite similar to the Country Choice pudding, it’s especially light, as it contains only breadcrumbs and no flour, and it is best made with premium fruit, which can include beautiful whole glacé fruits, and fresh spices.

Store puddings in a cool and dry place, or refrigerate. Makes two 2-pint/1 litre puddings, each serving 8.

Click for Christmas Pudding Recipe