I had 30 minutes to organise a pudding before World's Strongest Man came on tv this evening. I glanced at what was in the fruit bowl, flicked through my ever reliable Mary Berry Baking Bible and arrived at the hot lemon souffle pudding. Strongest Man came on just as the pudding went in the oven so my timing was bang on and the pudding was ready to eat by the end of the programme. Result!
I haven't decided who I'm supporting in Strong Man this year. Hafthor Bjornsson is obviously pretty bloody awesome but it's hard not to root for Zydrunas Savickas or Brian Shaw. Ultimately nobody will ever replace my love for Magnus Samuelsson; he was the best. I still miss the big Swede.
The pudding was a big hit. Dad proclaimed it was "outstanding", my brother who generally isn't fussed with lemon flavours said it was "hellish good" and Mum went for seconds. We easily polished it off between the four of us.
I think this was better than the last lemon pudding I made a few years ago, which I think was a Rachel Allen recipe. It's tart yet sweet and has lovely textures: soft, almost moussey sponge on with a glubby, lemon custard/sauce underneath.
Now I have to tackle the pile of dishes...
Now I have to tackle the pile of dishes...
Lemon pudding
Recipe from Mary Berry's Baking Bible
75g (3oz) softened butter
250g (9oz) caster sugar
3 large eggs, separated
75g (3oz) self raising flour
grated zest and juice of 2 lemons
450ml (14 fl oz) milk
Preheat the oven to 190C/170 Fan/Gas 5. Grease a shallow 1.5L (2 1/2pt) ovenproof dish. (I forgot to grease, but it was fine.)
Beat together the sugar and butter in a large bowl. Mix in the egg yolks followed by the flour, lemon rind and lemon juice. Pour in the milk in a steady stream whilst mixing. The mixture will look a bit curdled but don't worry, that's fine. In a separate (clean, grease free!) large bowl whisk the egg whites until they form soft peaks. Carefully fold the eggs into the other mixture using a metal spoon.
Pour the mixture into your ovenproof dish and place in a large roasting tin. Pour in enough boiling water into the roasting tin to come halfway up your dish. It's easier to do this at the oven door with the tray already on the oven shelf, otherwise you risk spilling when carrying it to the oven!
Bake in the oven for 1 hour or until golden brown on top. Mine was looking quite golden at about 40 minutes but I wasn't sure it was fully cooked yet so I turned down the temperature a bit for the remaining 20 minutes. I recommend keeping an eye on the oven in case you find yours bakes quickly too. Serve immediately with a dusting of icing sugar.
Recipe from Mary Berry's Baking Bible
75g (3oz) softened butter
250g (9oz) caster sugar
3 large eggs, separated
75g (3oz) self raising flour
grated zest and juice of 2 lemons
450ml (14 fl oz) milk
Preheat the oven to 190C/170 Fan/Gas 5. Grease a shallow 1.5L (2 1/2pt) ovenproof dish. (I forgot to grease, but it was fine.)
Beat together the sugar and butter in a large bowl. Mix in the egg yolks followed by the flour, lemon rind and lemon juice. Pour in the milk in a steady stream whilst mixing. The mixture will look a bit curdled but don't worry, that's fine. In a separate (clean, grease free!) large bowl whisk the egg whites until they form soft peaks. Carefully fold the eggs into the other mixture using a metal spoon.
Pour the mixture into your ovenproof dish and place in a large roasting tin. Pour in enough boiling water into the roasting tin to come halfway up your dish. It's easier to do this at the oven door with the tray already on the oven shelf, otherwise you risk spilling when carrying it to the oven!
Bake in the oven for 1 hour or until golden brown on top. Mine was looking quite golden at about 40 minutes but I wasn't sure it was fully cooked yet so I turned down the temperature a bit for the remaining 20 minutes. I recommend keeping an eye on the oven in case you find yours bakes quickly too. Serve immediately with a dusting of icing sugar.
