LAST month we looked at good old fashioned puddings and as I'm a great fan of them I have lots more to share with you. Most of them have been made by our grandparents and their grandparents before them, so they must be good to have lasted so long!

BREAD AND BUTTER PUDDING

This really is a favourite of mine as long as the top is crispy and the middle nice and soft. You need to use proper bread, not the commercial sliced, and it's a chance to use some which is a few days old. Traditionally, it is white but wholemeal can be used. Posh restaurants make it from brioche, but unless these are left over it's an expensive way of tackling a cheap dish. I also like to use butter instead of any other spread as this adds to the flavour and a few drops of vanilla extract make the custard tasty.

Approximately loaf bread, buttered
More butter for greasing the dish
2 oz sultanas
1 egg and 1 egg yolk
2 oz sugar
pint full cream milk (or pint milk and pint cream)
A few drops of vanilla extract
teaspoon mixed spice
Grated nutmeg

Butter a shallow two-pint dish liberally, and line the bottom and sides with the buttered bread. It should fit like a glove. The secret is to put the buttered sides of the bread against the dish. This way, when it cooks, the bread becomes beautifully crispy. Scatter the sultanas and the mixed spice over the base before you prepare the custard.

Whisk the egg, yolk, sugar and vanilla extract in a bowl with the milk (and cream, if using). Pour this into the lined dish. Leave in the fridge for 20 minutes.

Arrange more triangles of buttered bread over the top, so they stand up like little soldiers (the buttered side being uppermost). Grate a little nutmeg on top and sprinkle with caster sugar. Bake in a moderate oven (gas mark 4/180C/350F) in a Bain-marie for 45 minutes to 1 hour until the custard is set and the top is crisp and crunchy! (Should serve six portions).

LEMON QUEEN OF PUDDINGS

This is another favourite but I have changed from the original recipe using jam and subsidising it for lemon curd. Again it uses breadcrumbs that are made from proper bread a few days old.

3 oz fresh white breadcrumbs
pint milk
pint single cream
1 lemon
2 oz butter
2 eggs yolks
2 oz caster sugar
2 tablespoons brandy (optional)
8 oz lemon curd
* Meringue
2 egg whites
4 oz caster sugar

Butter a two-pint ovenproof dish and sprinkle the breadcrumbs in the bottom. Put the milk and cream into a saucepan with the zest of the lemon and the butter and heat until just warm. Beat the egg yolks with 2 oz of sugar in a mixing bowl and stir in the heated milk mixture and brandy (if using) until smooth. Pour over the breadcrumbs and leave to soak for at least 15 minutes. Bake in a Bain-marie at 180C/350F/gas mark 4 for 25-30 minutes, or until lightly set.

Mix the lemon curd with the juice of the lemon. Spread this over the top of the pudding.

For the meringue, whisk the egg whites until very stiff and fold in 4 oz sugar. Pile or pipe this meringue over the top of the lemon curd. Return the pudding to the oven for a further 15-20 minutes, or until the meringue is crisp and lightly browned. Serve hot. (Serves six portions).

PINEAPPLE UPSIDEDOWN PUDDING

Do you remember this old favourite which is served upside down with pineapple rings poking through the sponge and cherries in the centre? I prefer to use a Victoria sponge mixture but often cooks use 6ozs of self-raising flour instead of 4ozs and then the texture is more solid. You can make an impressive sauce by using custard powder and substituting the juice for milk. It will come out as a lovely golden sauce. You will have to make up the amount of liquid you need with water and won't need so much sugar as you do when making custard.

Small can pineapple rings (six approx)
3 cherries halved
4 oz self raising flour
Good pinch salt
4 oz butter or margarine
4 oz caster sugar
2 eggs
Few drops vanilla essence
Little milk for mixing

Grease and line the base of a seven inch tin with a disc of greaseproof paper.

Drain the pineapple and arrange them in the base. Pop a half cherry (open side upwards) in the centre.

Make the topping by creaming the fat with the sugar and beating in the egg with the vanilla essence.

Sift in the flour with the salt and add enough milk to get a dropping consistency. Place dollops over the pineapple and flatten the mixture, but do so carefully so as to not disturb the pineapple.

Place in a pre-heated oven 180C/ 350F/gas mark 4. Cook for 30 minutes.

Turn out onto a warmed serving plate and serve at once. (Serves four portions).

BAKED EGG CUSTARD

This is a great dish and much lighter than those above. You must make sure you don't cook it in too hot an oven otherwise it will weep and you won't get a smooth texture. Don't be mean with the nutmeg on top and freshly grated is the best.

1 pint whole milk
3 whole eggs plus 1 yolk
4 oz caster sugar
Few drops vanilla extract
Grated nutmeg

Place the eggs in a bowl with the vanilla. Beat them together but not too much. Heat the milk with the sugar to blood heat and pour over the eggs. If you want a very smooth custard then strain this into a buttered ovenproof dish. If it's just for the family then pour it in, and grate some nutmeg on the top.

Place this dish in a Bain-marie (a water bath) that has sufficient water to reach half way up the sides. The water also should be tepid. Bake in a slow oven (150C/ 300F/gas mark 2) for 45 minutes or until the custard is set.

WALNUT AND TREACLE TART

If you aren't too careful this can be a very sweet and sickly pudding so don't be over generous with the filling and don't use too small a dish. By adding the walnuts this gives it more flavour and takes off the sweetness. You can, of course, leave the nuts out if you prefer.

8 oz rich shortcrust pastry
8 oz golden syrup
4 oz fresh breadcrumbs
2 oz chopped walnuts
Juice and rind of half a lemon
level teaspoon ginger (optional)

Line a 10 inch (25cm) tin or flan dish with the pastry.

In a bowl, mix all the other ingredients, and spread over the pastry. If you have a little pastry left over, then make twists with it, and lay them across the filling.

Bake for 15 minutes at gas mark 6 (200C, 400F), and then a further 30 minutes at gas mark 4 (180C, 350F). Serve hot or cold. (Serves eight portions).

STICKY TOFFEE PUDDING

Another one for those with a sweet tooth! It isn't that old fashioned, but as it's so popular I felt I had to include it.

* Pudding:
6 oz dates, stoned and chopped
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
2 oz butter
6 oz caster sugar
2 eggs
6 oz self-raising flour
teaspoon vanilla extract
* Butterscotch Sauce:
6 oz soft brown sugar
6 tablespoons double cream
4 oz butter
teaspoon vanilla extract
Pudding

Grease a seven-inch square loose-bottomed cake tin, and line it with greaseproof paper.

Pour half a pint of water over the dates and bring to the boil. Off the heat, add the bicarbonate of soda and leave to cool.

Cream the butter and sugar, add the eggs a little at a time and beat well. Carefully fold in the flour, and then stir in the dates with their liquid, and the vanilla extract.

Pour into the prepared cake tin and bake in the centre of a preheated moderate oven (gas mark 4, 180C, 350F) for 30 to 40 minutes.

Butterscotch Sauce
In a saucepan, mix the sugar, cream, butter, and vanilla extract. Bring to the boil, and then simmer for 3 minutes. Add a little milk to bring the sauce to a pouring consistency.

Pour a little of the sauce over the cooked pudding, then put it back into the oven for five minutes.

Cut the pudding into small squares and serve with a puddle of the sauce. The rest of the sauce can be served separately. (Serves six and eight portions).

  • Frances Kitchin can be heard on BBC Somerset (95.5 MHz FM and 1566 kHz AM).