A Bite of Britain: Sugared Plum Pudding

A traditional British batter pudding, made sweet with sugar and plums. The plums caramelize as they bake, creating a dessert that’s perfect served warm with cream or custard.

My three year-old is rehearsing for her ballet début, as a snowflake in The Nutcracker, which is ridiculously cute. However, hearing the iconic music repeatedly over the past weeks has driven me slightly insane, not to mention planting visions of sugar plums dancing in my head. Since we’re at the end of British plum season, I bought a couple kilos of Marjorie’s Seedling plums from a lovely old lady nearby who grows them, and decided to run with it.

Some say that sugar plum is a term that denotes a type of confectionery, made from dried fruits, typically served around Christmas time (and has nothing to do with plums at all). Others claim sugar plums are indeed real plums, dried, sugared and baked like a zillion times and then hung on Christmas trees.

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Frankly none of it sounded like what I had in mind for these gorgeous, golden-fleshed beauties. We ate quite a few of them as is, but they were a bit too soft really, and were begging to be baked into something. But time was running short, as they were rapidly turning over-ripe in the bowl, so I had to act fast.

Rather fancying a puddingy-type dessert, I of course thought of Plum Pudding. But, again, not what I thought it would be. The plum pudding of fairy tale fame is actually more commonly known today as Christmas Pudding – that dense, dark domed cake we light on fire before enjoying with brandy-laced cream (YUM). But too, too much for today and it’s certainly not Christmas yet.

I finally settled on making a baked batter pudding, which some of you might recognize as being the British counterpart of a French clafoutis. It is a custardy dessert with a consistency rather like a cross between flan and bread pudding. The British version, especially Mrs. Beeton’s (item 1781, p. 928)*, looks like a Yorkshire Pudding recipe, but the addition of stewed or fresh fruit renders the finished product a lot more moist and, of course, sweet.

After much reading and comparing, I made up my own, combining my idea of ‘sugared plums’ with a diplomatic trans-manche pudding and some cinnamon too (my go-to Autumn flavor). This is really easy to make and results in such spicy, syrupy gorgeousness that you’ll be literally licking your plate clean (as I did).

How to Make British Sugared Plum Pudding

1. Preheat the Oven

• Set your oven to 350°F (180°C, Gas Mark 4).

2. Prepare the Egg Mixture

• In a large mixing bowl, beat the eggs until fully combined.
• Add the milk, cream, and vanilla extract, and whisk until blended.

3. Mix the Dry Ingredients

• Sift the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ground cloves (if using) into the egg mixture.
• Add the sugar and whisk until the batter is smooth and slightly frothy.

4. Prepare the Baking Dish

• Grease the bottom of a medium-sized baking dish (about 9 inches in diameter) with the butter.
• Arrange the plum halves, cut side down, to completely cover the bottom of the dish.

5. Assemble the Pudding

• Sprinkle half of the reserved sugar over the plums.
• Pour the batter evenly over the plums.
• Sprinkle the remaining sugar on top of the batter for a caramelized finish.

6. Bake the Pudding

• Place the dish in the preheated oven and bake for about 30 minutes, or until the pudding is puffed and golden brown.
• Check for doneness by inserting a knife into the center; if the batter is still runny, turn off the oven and leave the pudding inside with the door closed for another 10–15 minutes.

7. Cool and Serve

• Allow the pudding to cool slightly. Note that it will sink a bit as it cools—this is normal.
• Serve warm with cream, custard, or ice cream.

Recipe Notes

1. Adjusting Sweetness: If your plums are particularly sweet, you can reduce the sugar slightly to balance the flavors.
2. Substitutions: For a lighter version, replace the cream with additional milk, though the pudding will lose some volume.
3. Clove Use: If using cloves, add sparingly, as too much can overpower the pudding.
4. Fruit Variations: This batter works beautifully with other fruits such as peaches, cherries, or mixed berries. Using cherries creates a dish reminiscent of a French clafoutis.

A Bite of Britain: Sugared Plum Pudding

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4.8 from 9 reviews

• Author: Ruby Moukli
• Total Time: 45 minutes
• Yield: Serves 6-8 1x

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Description

A traditional British batter pudding, made sweet with sugar and plums. The plums caramelize as they bake, creating a dessert that’s perfect served warm with cream or custard.

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Ingredients

Units USM Scale 1x2x3x

4 large eggs

1/2 cup (125 ml) whole milk

1/2 cup (125 ml) double cream (or heavy cream)

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 cup (100 g) brown sugar, plus 2 tbsp (30 g) reserved

1 rounded tbsp (10 g) all-purpose flour

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

Pinch of ground cloves (optional)

1 tbsp unsalted butter, for greasing

12–14 ripe plums, stoned (pitted) and halved

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Instructions

1. Preheat the Oven

• Set your oven to 350°F (180°C, Gas Mark 4).

2. Prepare the Egg Mixture

• In a large mixing bowl, beat the eggs until fully combined.
• Add the milk, cream, and vanilla extract, and whisk until blended.

3. Mix the Dry Ingredients

• Sift the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ground cloves (if using) into the egg mixture.
• Add the sugar and whisk until the batter is smooth and slightly frothy.

4. Prepare the Baking Dish

• Grease the bottom of a medium-sized baking dish (about 9 inches in diameter) with the butter.
• Arrange the plum halves, cut side down, to completely cover the bottom of the dish.

5. Assemble the Pudding

• Sprinkle half of the reserved sugar over the plums.
• Pour the batter evenly over the plums.
• Sprinkle the remaining sugar on top of the batter for a caramelized finish.

6. Bake the Pudding

• Place the dish in the preheated oven and bake for about 30 minutes, or until the pudding is puffed and golden brown.
• Check for doneness by inserting a knife into the center; if the batter is still runny, turn off the oven and leave the pudding inside with the door closed for another 10–15 minutes.

7. Cool and Serve

• Allow the pudding to cool slightly. Note that it will sink a bit as it cools—this is normal.
• Serve warm with cream, custard, or ice cream.

Notes

Adjusting Sweetness: If your plums are particularly sweet, you can reduce the sugar slightly to balance the flavors.

Substitutions: For a lighter version, replace the cream with additional milk, though the pudding will lose some volume.

Clove Use: If using cloves, add sparingly, as too much can overpower the pudding.

Fruit Variations: This batter works beautifully with other fruits such as peaches, cherries, or mixed berries. Using cherries creates a dish reminiscent of a French clafoutis.

• Prep Time: 15 mins
• Cook Time: 30 mins
• Category: Dessert
• Method: Baking
• Cuisine: British

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1 slice
• Calories: 275
• Sugar: 28g
• Sodium: 75mg
• Fat: 11g
• Saturated Fat: 6g
• Unsaturated Fat: 4g
• Trans Fat: 0g
• Carbohydrates: 38g
• Fiber: 2g
• Protein: 6g
• Cholesterol: 110mg

*Isabella Beeton was the British 19th century ‘Martha Stewart’. Her ground-breaking ‘Book of Household Management’, 1861 (scanned from the 1907 edition) is now freely available to browse and search online, or as a PDF download. It’s entertaining, informative and beautiful – go get it!