The best of British - Treacle sponge

THE BRITISH nation should be proud of its pudding heritage and the fact that ‘they put hairs on your chest’, but sadly, humble desserts like spotted dick and treacle sponge are being cast aside in favour of fancy foreign sweets like Panna Cotta and Tiramisu.

As the days grow shorter and the nights grow colder, now is the time to dig out those forgotten cooking aprons and oven gloves and get into the spirit of making traditional wholesome winter puddings.

Traditional desserts are seen as time consuming and unhealthy, but really there’s nothing easier than cooking a crumble from scratch and even children can get involved in the kitchen.

So why not return to your roots and discover the sumptuous delights of these frugal but fabulous classic puds that will not only warm everyone’s tummies but also put a smile on every face around the table? Guaranteed! Here are a few of Delia Smith’s scrumptious puddings – for more, visit www.deliaonline.com

Treacle sponge

Yumm Yumm Yumm! Those are the only words that spring to mind to describe this divine dessert. Ingredients like golden syrup and black treacle can be found in specialist food shops dotted around the Algarve so there are no excuses not to make this…

Ingredients

1 tablespoon black treacle

3 tablespoons golden syrup

175 g self-raising flour

1 rounded teaspoon baking powder

175 g butter, softened

3 large eggs

175 g soft light brown sugar

To serve:

3 extra tbsp golden syrup

Method

You will also need a well buttered 1.2 litre pudding basin, a large mixing bowl, greaseproof paper and foil measuring 40 cm x 30 cm, some string and scissors.

First of all measure three tablespoons of golden syrup into the pudding basin. Then take a large mixing bowl, sift the flour and baking powder into it, add the softened butter, eggs, sugar and black treacle. Next, using an electric hand whisk, beat the mixture until it’s thoroughly blended and spoon this into the basin and level the top using the back of the tablespoon.

Place the sheet of foil over the greaseproof paper, make a pleat in the centre, and place this, foil-side up, on top of the pudding. Pull it down the sides and tie the string, taking the string over the top and tying it on the other side to make yourself a handle for lifting. Trim off the excess paper all the way round. Now steam the pudding for two hours, checking the water level halfway through.

To serve, loosen the pudding all round using a palette knife, invert it on to a warmed plate, and pour the extra tablespoons of syrup over the top. Serve with custard.

As an alternative, the treacle and golden syrup topping can be replaced with jam or lemon curd.