Steamed pudding has a bit of a poor reputation I feel; bad memories of stodgy school desserts or the ones that come in a can perhaps? In reality, homemade steamed puddings are light, moist and utterly delicious. I have started making a chocolate one every Christmas instead of a Christmas pudding and there is never a crumb left.
They are also really easy to make, especially if you cook it in a Crock-Pot! It does take a little longer to cook than if you steam it on the hob; but you don't need to worry about it boiling over, or indeed boiling dry; it can just be left to it's own devices. I used the Crock-Pot 4.7L Digital Countdown Slow Cooker which was a perfect fit for my 1 litre pudding basin – do make sure that your pudding basin will fit in your slow cooker when placed on top of an upturned saucer before you start!
This pudding can be made with regular oranges (make sure you use a thin-skinned variety for the candied orange slices) but it seems a shame not to make the most of gorgeous blood oranges while they are in their sadly short season. The wonderful colour also makes the pudding look so much more beautiful and impressive!
The only downside to steamed puddings is that they really are best eaten straight away and aren't quite as good reheated (though any leftovers are certainly still delicious when microwaved). Once it is cooked however it is fine to be left, still tightly wrapped and in the hot water, in the slow cooker on the keep warm setting for an hour or so.
Generously grease a 1 to 1.2 litre pudding basin and place a small disc of baking parchment in the bottom. Put the kettle on.
Whisk together the butter, sugar and orange zest until pale and fluffy then whisk in the eggs one at a time, adding a spoonful of the flour with each one.
Once the eggs are combined, sift in the rest of the flour, the ground ginger and the salt and fold through. Add the chopped stem ginger and mix in.
Transfer the batter to the prepared pudding basin and level the top. Make sure that there is a gap of at least an inch between the batter and the top of the basin to allow for expansion.
Cover the top of the basin with a centrally pleated circle of baking parchment and another of foil and tie securely with string. Make a loop in the string to create a carrying handle.
Place an upturned saucer in the bottom of the slow cooker and place the pudding basin on top. Pour enough freshly boiled water into the slow cooker to come 2/3rds of the way up the sides of the pudding bowl.
Place the lid on and cook on high for four hours. Once cooked the pudding should be firm to the touch and a skewer inserted into the centre should come out clean. If it is still undercooked, replace the baking parchment, foil and string and cook for another hour.
Once cooked, remove the string and parchment. Place a serving platter on top of the basin and flip the whole lot over. Carefully lift off the basin, top with the candied orange slices and syrup and serve straight away with custard or ice cream.
While the pudding is cooking make the candied orange slices and syrup. Place the blood orange juice in a measuring jug and add enough water to take it up to the 250ml mark.
Place the juice in a small saucepan with the sugar. Cook over a gentle heat, stirring regularly until the sugar has dissolved.
Add the orange slices and bring up to a gentle simmer. Cook for about 45 minutes to 1 hour, until the oranges are soft and the peel has turned slightly translucent. Stir them every now and again to make sure that they are evenly covered with syrup.
Remove from the heat and set aside to cool. They can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.
As you can see, a Crock-Pot is not only good for cooking stew! It is a highly adaptable appliance that can be used year round for a great many recipes. For another slow cooker dessert recipe idea, try my slow cooker chocolate caramel ginger cheesecake.
I was commissioned to make this slow cooker blood orange and ginger steamed pudding by Crock-Pot and was sent one of their slow cookers. All opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that allow me to continue doing what I love – playing with food and making a mess of my kitchen.