Joan Mary's Christmas pudding a la Gordon Ramsay

Doug Sherring

Ingredients

3	Mandarins, zest
3	Bay leaves
210 g	Brown sugar, light
3 Tbsp	Maple syrup, and extra to drizzle
100 g	Self raising flour
4	Large eggs, lightly beaten
1 ½ tsp	Baking powder
1 tsp	Ground cloves
1 pinch	Salt
80 g	Crystalised ginger, soaked in warm water to remove sugar coating and then chopped finely

To Serve

1	Whipped cream
1	Dried cranberries, to decorate
1	Whisky, to lace the cream

Directions

1. Grease a 1.2 litre pudding basin with butter, scatter the mandarin zest in the bottom and pour in the maple syrup.
2. Press the bay leaves into the middle of the base.
3. Cream the butter and sugar together until pale, add the eggs one at a time while still beating.
4. Sift in the flour, baking powder, cloves and salt and fold through the mixture.
5. Add the chopped ginger and mix through.
6. Spoon the mix into the pudding bowl, covering with a buttered, pleated sheet of baking paper (butter side down) and secure with a rubber band.
7. Cover this with a sheet of pleated tin foil and tie securely with string.
8. Stand the covered basin on a trivet in a large saucepan.
9. Fill with the pot with boiling water to reach more than half-way up the basin.
10. Cover with a tight-fitting lid and simmer over low heat for 1.5 hours. Check every half hour and top up with more boiling water as needed.
11. The pudding is ready when a skewer comes clean.
12. To unmould, loosen the sides of the pudding and cover the basin with a warm serving dish.
13. Turn over, holding the plate firmly on the top of the basin.
14. Decorate with some dried cranberries.
15. The pudding is now ready to serve with some whipped cream laced with whiskey.