Almond Cream Sauce For Steamed Date Pudding Recipes

WARM DATE AND ALMOND PUDDINGS

Steps:

• Butter and flour 6 individual ovenproof bowls, about 2/3 cup capacity. Set on a baking sheet and spoon 1 tbsp corn syrup into each of the molds (this will become the sticky topping). Set aside.
• Remove the pits from the dates and chop them into small pieces. Place in a bowl and add the sherry and just enough boiling water to cover. Let soak for 10 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 375°F (convection oven to 375°F). Cream the butter and sugar together either by hand or using an electric mixer until soft, light, and creamy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. (The mixture may appear to separate at this point, but it will come back together.)
• Sift together the flour, salt, and baking powder, combine with the ground almonds, and fold into the batter with the orange zest. Squeeze out the excess moisture from the dates, add to the mixture, and stir well to combine.
• Divide the batter among the ovenproof bowls, filling them no more than two-thirds full. Bake until well risen, golden, and springy to the touch, 20 to 25 minutes.
• To unmold, run a small knife around the inside of each mold and invert the pudding onto a warm plate. Serve the little desserts at once, either on their own or, as I prefer, with a dollop of cream.

NORWEGIAN ALMOND CREAM WITH BLUEBERRY SAUCE (MANDEL PUDDING)

Steps:

• For the pudding: lightly grease a 500ml ring mould. Put the almonds, sugar and almond essence in a large saucepan over a low heat. Stir in the cream and milk and stir until the sugar has dissolved. Increase the heat, bring it to the boil then remove from the heat.
• Leave the gelatine sheets to soak in a bowl of cold water for 5 minutes to soften, then squeeze the sheets and put them in a large bowl. Strain the milk mixture over the gelatine and stir until it has melted. Pour the mixture into the ring mould and leave it in the fridge overnight to set.
• For the blueberry sauce: put the blueberries, sugar and water in a pan over a gentle heat and stir to dissolve the sugar. Increase the heat and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for about 5 minutes until the blueberries are soft -- mash them with a wooden spoon to help them on their way. Mix the cornflour with a tablespoon of cold water, then stir this into the blueberries. Cook until the compote thickens and remove it from the heat. Sieve it into a bowl, leave it to cool and then chill overnight.
• To serve: stir the amaretto into the thick cream and scatter it with the almonds. Take the pudding and compote out of the fridge and dip the ring mould in hot water for a few seconds. Tip the pudding out of it on to a serving plate, and accompany it with the blueberry sauce and amaretto cream.

OLD FASHIONED DATE PUDDING

Steps:

• In a saucepan, bring 1 cup brown sugar and water to a boil. Cook and stir for 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and add butter; set aside. In a bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt and remaining brown sugar. Stir in milk until smooth. add dates and walnuts., Pour hot brown sugar syrup into an 8-in. square baking dish. Spoon batter over syrup. Bake at 350° for 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of cake topping comes out clean. Serve warm with whipped cream.

STEAMED CHRISTMAS PUDDING

Steps:

• Grease one 2-quart lidded pudding mold. Sift together the flour, sugar and cinnamon; set aside.
• In a large bowl, mix together the eggs, butter, mincemeat, cranberry sauce and pumpkin. Add to flour mixture and mix until smooth; pour into pudding mold.
• Place a rack in the bottom of a large pot, over medium heat, and fill 1/2 way up with boiling water. Place the pudding on the rack. Steam for 2 1/2 hours.
• Check the pan occasionally and add more water if needed. Check for doneness by inserting a toothpick in the center. When firm, place the pudding mold on a rack outside of the water for 10 minutes and unmold.
• Prepare a sauce by blending together the sour cream, cream cheese and confectioners sugar. Spoon dollops over warm pudding and serve.

STICKY DATE PUDDING

Steps:

• For the pudding, add the dates and bicarbonate of soda to the hot water and leave to soak until soft. Meanwhile, beat the butter and sugar together.
• Add the syrup to the butter & sugar mix. Sift the flour, cinnamon and ginger together, and add to the mix as well, until smooth.
• Pour mixture into a large tray, and bake for approx. 30 minutes at 150⁰C. A knife inserted into the middle of the mixture should come out clean when cooked.
• For the sauce, boil the butter, sugar, syrup and vanilla pod & seeds for 10 minutes. Add the cream and boil for another 10 minutes.

ALMOND BREAD PUDDING WITH SALTED CARAMEL SAUCE

Steps:

• For almond butter:
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Spread out almonds on a rimmed baking sheet; toast, tossing halfway through, until beginning to brown, 12-15 minutes. Let cool.
• Transfer cooled almonds to a food processor. Add butter, almond extract, if using, and salt, and process until mixture is the texture of coarsely ground peanut butter. Set aside.
• For caramel sauce:
• Whisk sugar, cream of tartar, and 3 tablespoons water in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring to dissolve sugar. Cook, without stirring, until mixture begins to caramelize in spots. Using a heatproof spatula, stir mixture to ensure even caramelization. Cook, stirring occasionally, until mixture is the color of honey, 10-12 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until caramel is a deep amber color, about 5 minutes longer.
• Remove caramel from heat; carefully whisk in butter (mixture will bubble vigorously), then cream and salt. Let cool slightly in pan, then pour into a small bowl. DO AHEAD: Caramel sauce can be made 2 weeks ahead. Let cool completely, cover, and chill. Rewarm before using.
• For pudding and assembly:
• Combine half-and-half and cream in a medium saucepan. Scrape in seeds from vanilla bean; add bean. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat; remove from heat.
• Whisk egg yolks, eggs, sugar, and salt in a medium bowl to blend. Gradually whisk hot cream mixture into egg mixture. Cover custard with plastic wrap and let stand for 30 minutes for flavors to meld. Strain custard into a large bowl; discard vanilla bean.
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter cake pan; set aside. Using biscuit cutter, cut out circles from each slice of bread, reserving scraps. Arrange bread scraps in pan in an even layer and press lightly to compact.
• Spread each bread round with almond butter (you will have a little left over; save to spread on toast for breakfast). Place all but 1 bread round almond butter side down in pan (on top of scraps), overlapping slightly to create a shingled circle. Place the last round in the center (bread will come about 3/4"-1" above rim of pan).
• Pour custard evenly over bread. Sprinkle with almonds and raw sugar.
• Place cake pan in a large roasting pan. Pour hot water into roasting pan to come halfway up the sides of cake pan. Cover roasting pan with foil, tenting slightly in center if needed to avoid touching bread.
• Bake pudding until top no longer jiggles but center is not quite set, 25-30 minutes. Remove foil from pan and increase oven temperature to 375°F. Bake pudding until custard is set in the center and top is golden brown and crisp, about 25 minutes longer.
• Remove cake pan from roasting pan. Let cool slightly. Dust pudding with powdered sugar. Slice into wedges. Place on plates, drizzle caramel sauce over and top with a dollop of crème fraîche.

HARD SAUCE FOR HOLIDAY STEAMED PUDDING

Steps:

• Cream all ingredients together and beat until fluffy.
• It takes only a few minutes to make if butter is room temperature.