Ingredients
Spicy pear steamed pudding
Orange syrup
Method
1.Peel, quarter and core pears; chop coarsely. Place in large saucepan with sugar, rind and the water; bring to the boil. Reduce heat; simmer, covered, 15 minutes or until pears soften. Cool to room temperature.
2.Beat butter and extra sugar in small bowl with electric mixer until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Stir in sifted flour, soda, ginger and spice, then milk and cold pear mixture.
3.Pour mixture into greased 1.5-litre (6-cup) pudding steamer. Cover with pleated baking paper and foil; secure with lid or string.
4.Place pudding in large saucepan with enough boiling water to come halfway up side of steamer; cover pan with tightfitting lid. Boil 1½ hours, replenishing water as necessary to maintain level. Stand pudding 5 minutes before turning onto serving plate.
5.Meanwhile, to make orange syrup, stir ingredients in small saucepan over heat until sugar dissolves; bring to the boil. Reduce heat; simmer, without stirring, about 10 minutes or until thickened slightly. Discard spices.
6.Serve pudding topped with orange syrup.
When they’re in season, this pudding also works well with quince. Prepare 4 small quince (800g) as for the pears in step 1, cooking them for 30 minutes until softened.
Note
