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Wales, United Kingdom
Documenting one couple's attempts to live a more self-sufficient life.

Thursday, 6 October 2011

'tis the season of mists and warming puddings

After our brief summer (five days of sunshine and I was in meetings for two of them!) the weather now feels properly autumnal* rather than just a continuation of a rubbish summer. This is the time of year for hearty stews and proper puddings, both of which tend to take a bit of forward thinking. We don't usually have dessert, but this evening as we finished our stew (including four different vegetables, all from the garden), we both fancied something more. Ingredients in the house were limited, but did include flour, butter, sugar, and one egg, which suggested sponge pudding to me.

A quick google found plenty of recipes - Delia's included three eggs (though that did serve four to six) and required steaming for two hours, so that was no good. Then I spotted this microwave recipe, which called for only one egg - bingo! I'm not generally a fan of the microwave - it doesn't feel like proper cooking - but sponge pudding in fifteen minutes? It had to be tried. The recipe even had the advantage of being easy to remember; two of everything apart from the egg, though I doubt an extra egg would hurt it.


At the third time of making this, I persuaded Ian to take a photo before eating it.

Sponge pudding in fifteen minutes? That's practically convenience food!

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* What's the American equivalent of this adjective? Fallen?
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13 comments:

  1. Sarah6 October 2011 at 23:09

    Still waiting for news on the chickens....what are you waiting for??!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Rachy7 October 2011 at 00:07

    Chickens? You're getting chickens??! Woo hoo!!! I was wondering why you were lacking in chickens :D

    ReplyDelete
  3. Demandra7 October 2011 at 01:08

    We use autumnal as well! And now I've got to ask the husband what sponge pudding is.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Sarah7 October 2011 at 07:13

    oops....think I started a rumour. Still, it's a good one.

    ReplyDelete
  5. louisa @ TheReallyGoodLife7 October 2011 at 11:38

    The thing that sticks with me most about my family getting a microwave in the late 1980s is the switch from once-in-a-blue-moon steamed syrup or chocolate puddings, to having them every week after our Sunday roast. It was like Christmas & birthdays rolled into one. Even now, it doesn't seem like cheating it me, it just seems like delicious magic :)

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  6. Rachel8 October 2011 at 17:44

    I haven't really changed my position on the chicken question since I wrote about it in February: http://growingthingsandmakingthings.blogspot.com/2011/02/chickens.html
    I do enjoy reading about your chickens though, Rachy... and yours too, Louisa, come to that :-)

    Demandra, I'm glad to hear that 'autumnal' survives the loss of 'autumn' - it's such a lovely word! Be warned, an introduction to sponge pudding could be dangerous...

    Louisa, I'm with you on the microwaved puddings. In fact, I could yet learn to love my microwave (which, btw, is the same machine that my dad bought in about 1990, and used mainly for 'baked' potatoes, as far as I remember. Maybe this is why I've never had a very good impression of them!)

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  7. Sarah8 October 2011 at 18:27

    I'll consider myself told. I wasn't reading your blog then, so I didn't know. So sorry for wasting your time.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Rachel9 October 2011 at 16:16

    Sorry Secret Sheep, I didn't mean to be sharp. It's just that, as you've now seen from the previous post, I do get a bit sick of people telling me I should keep chickens.

    Comments here are never a waste of time, please don't stop talking to me...

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  9. Unknown11 October 2011 at 19:43

    Mmmm .. this looks GOOD! I wonder if there's a vegan version ... I'll have to search for that! We're like you ... we don't usually want a desert but there's something about cooler temperatures that just beg for a sweet. :-)

    BTW ... your suggestion is going to be used tomorrow (Wed) on Change The World Wednesday ... hope to see you then! :-)

    ReplyDelete
  10. Rachel16 October 2011 at 14:22

    Hmm, a vegan version... replace butter with (less) oil and replace the egg and milk with... syrup? I'm not sure - do you think it would work? Let me know if you try it.

    Thanks for dropping by, and it's nice to know you're using my suggestion. Right now I'm super busy, so I'm not sure I'll have time to actually do anything, particularly not anything that involves a trip into town, but I will try to find time to come and write something vaguely interesting in your blog comments.

    ReplyDelete
  11. anon17 October 2011 at 13:46

    A vegan version from the Animal Aid website:
    "Microwaved steamed sponge pudding
    110g self-raising flour
    50g sugar
    1 flat tsp baking powder
    100ml water
    60ml vegetable oil
    1 tbsp golden syrup
    Method
    In an 18cm Pyrex bowl put the first three ingredients. Stir in the water and oil. Mix thoroughly. Pour the syrup in the middle of the mixture (it will sink to the bottom). Cover bowl with microwave- proof cling-film. Microwave on high for approx 4 mins.
    Leave to stand for a few mins. Turn out onto a plate and serve with soya cream or custard.
    Try with jam or marmalade instead of golden syrup. You can also add a few chopped up dates or raisins to the batter.
    It is also useful as a sponge base. Just microwave batter mix without added syrup or jam, allow to get cold and use sponge for trifles, etc. "

    I've not tried it yet, but I will!
    cj

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  12. Bec23 October 2011 at 21:54

    Hi Rachel!

    Check this out; http://www.backyardaquaponics.com/

    Hook a fishpond up to a gravel vegetable garden bed, pump the pooey fish water through the vegetable patch which feeds your plants and they clean the water. You can grow your own fish to eat!

    The only problem is the electric water pump and buying fish food...

    ReplyDelete
  13. Rachel24 October 2011 at 18:02

    Thanks for the recipe, cj :-)

    Cheers, Bec, that's an interesting idea. I have trouble with killing slugs, so I can't see myself coping with killing fish for food. Pebble, on the other hand, would have no such worries!

    ReplyDelete

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