Hit me with your best Christmas cake/pudding recipes please

[Netix]

Light Christmas Pudding

2 cups self raising flour (or plain flour + baking powder)
150g butter, softened
2/3 cup milk
1 cup mixed dried fruit, including glace cherries
1/2 cup caster sugar
Pinch salt

Mix dry ingredients together, then add butter.
Add enough milk to make a soft dough.
Put in lightly greased/lined container, seal tightly, steam (covered) for 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Makes one 16.5cmx8cm pudding (that?s the size of my pudding steamers). Remember to grease the inside of the lid!
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Turn out onto a floured surface. Roll out the mixture to produce a roll approximately 15cm (6in) long and 5cm (2in) in diameter.
Prepare either a tea towel lightly dusted with flour, or sheet of kitchen foil or a double thickness of greaseproof paper, brushed with melted butter.
Wrap loosely but securely, leaving enough space for it to rise.
Tie or seal the ends. Place in steamer and cover tightly.
Steam for 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

Serve cut into slices with hot custard / brandy cream / ice cream.

Disclaimer: It's a 'light' pudding for its colour, not for its dietary benefits!
I make this during the year with sultanas or currants for spotted willy pudding. The original recipe called for suet instead of butter, but I find that butter gives it a better golden colour, not to mention the much better taste!




Classic Fruit Cake (from Body Shop Cookbook)
Serves 10-12
1 cup raw sugar
1/2 cup water
3 cups dried fruit (any fruit in cupboard)
1/2 cup sherry or 1/2 cup pineapple juice (I used sherry, I think its an essential Christmas cooking ingredient)
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon bicarb soda
250g butter
2 eggs
1 cup plain flour
1 cup self raising flour

Preheat oven to 180 degrees, or 160 degrees fan forced.

In large saucepan, put sugar, water, fruit, sherry, nutmeg, bicarb soda and butter. Stir over low heat to combine.
Bring to the boil, then remove from heat.
Cool for only five minutes, then add beaten eggs and flours. (Stir the mixture quickly when adding the eggs to make sure that they don't start to cook in the hot water mixture).
Pour into a lined and greased deep 22cm baking tin covered with aluminium foil. (I double lined the base of my tin, which helps stop the cake from burning. From memory, I may have even put double layer of brown paper around the outside of the tin tied with kitchen string. I did this for a cake, I just can't remember which one...)
Bake for 1 1/2 hours, or when cooked when tested with a skewer. Remove from oven, and leave to cool in tin for five to ten minutes before removing from tin, carefully peeling off paper, and leaving to cool completely on a wire rack.

To serve this cake, you could dust it with some icing sugar (dust stars on the cake!). Maybe mix the icing sugar with a small amount of cinnamon or nutmeg. Serve warm out of the oven, or heat slices in the microwave for 20 seconds or so, then with some cream.