With Christmas just around the corner there will be plenty of jars of rich and fruity mincemeat in the shops – perfect for adding to mini sponge puddings.
Makes 4
Ready in 1 hour 10 minutes
Ingredients:
115g unsalted butter, softened, plus extra for greasing
6 tbsp good quality mincemeat
115g caster sugar
Zest of ½ orange or lemon
2 medium eggs, beaten
125g self-raising flour, sifted
1 tbsp milk
Thoroughly grease 4 x 175ml pudding basins with butter. Divide the mincemeat between the basins. Preheat the oven to 190C/Fan 170C/Gas mark 5.
Place the butter and sugar in a bowl and beat together until pale and creamy. Beat in the orange or lemon zest then gradually beat in the eggs, adding 1tbsp of the flour if the mixture starts to curdle. Fold in the rest of the flour with the milk to give a soft dropping consistency.
Divide the mixture between the pudding basins and cover each with a square of pleated buttered foil, scrunching it tightly around the sides of each basin. Transfer to a large roasting tin and pour in enough boiling water to come halfway up the sides of the basins.
Bake for 45-50 minutes or until risen and firm to the touch. Leave in the basins for 5 minutes then turn out onto serving plates. Serve with cream or custard.
Spice it up:Try adding 2 tsp ground cinnamon and ½ tsp ground nutmeg instead of the orange or lemon zest for a different flavour. You could even replace the caster sugar with light soft brown sugar too.
