Ingredients
Candied citrus peel
Citrus butter
Method
Boiled christmas pudding with homemade citrus peel
1.Combine fruit and liqueur in a large bowl. Add combined soda and water; mix well. Cover, stand overnight at room temperature.
2.Make candied citrus peel as recipe directs. (See below)
3.Make citrus butter; beat butter in a small bowl with an electric mixer until as white as possible. Gradually beat in 1 cup of the cooled reserved syrup. Roll butter mixture into a log shape; wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate or freeze until firm; cut into slices to serve.
4.Beat butter and sugar in a medium bowl with an electric mixer until just combined. Add eggs, one at a time, beating only until combined. Stir butter mixture into fruit mixture with citrus peel and 2 tablespoons of the reserved syrup from the peel. Stir in sifted flour and ginger, then breadcrumbs.
5.Wrap the pudding in a 60cm square of unbleached calico. Boil rapidly for 6 hours; replenish with boiling water as required (the water must not go off the boil). [Re-boil for 2 hours on the day of serving if preparing ahead.]
6.Accompany hot pudding with citrus butter; decorate with strips of candied citrus peel, or slices of candied orange.
Candied citrus peel
7.Peel rind thickly from oranges and lemon, including the white pith. Add rind to a medium saucepan of boiling water; simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Drain, repeat boiling then simmering.
8.Combine the water and sugar in a medium saucepan; stir over medium heat, without boiling, until sugar dissolves. Add rind, simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Remove pan from heat; stand for 10 minutes.
9.Transfer mixture to a heatproof bowl; stand rind in syrup overnight.
10.Place rind and syrup in a medium saucepan; simmer, uncovered, for 20 minutes. Remove rind from syrup; reserve syrup (you need about 1¼ cups of the syrup for the pudding and the citrus butter). Cool the rind and syrup; chop rind into pieces about the size of a currant.
You will need a 60cm (24-inch) square of unbleached calico. If the fabric is new, soak in cold water overnight, then boil for 20 minutes; rinse well before using. This pudding can also be steamed in a 2.25-litre (9-cup) pudding steamer.
Note
