April's Daring Bakers Challenge - Steamed Puddings

The April 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Esther of The Lilac Kitchen. She challenged everyone to make a traditional British pudding using, if possible, a very traditional British ingredient: suet

                 I must admit that I was scared. This was my first challenge, plus it was something very traditional process-making wise (not baking, but steaming). Also the fact that recipe recommend using suet was scary enough. 

Suet is specific kind of fat - usually beef or mutton fat, hard one placed around loins and kidneys.It has low melting point so that's why, hard in solid form, it's great alternative for butter. Especially if we are making puddings.

Yes - the puddings. I have some issues with, what you can call, traditional British kitchen. If we left all those greats, post-imperial and post-immigrants kitchens, we face quite heavy and simple dishes. But don't get me wrong - i love simple kitchen, but usually for me it means Tuscany kind not fish-and-chips one. Oh well...

Puddings has very strong position in Great Brittany. They even have Pudding Club. 

                     I decided to make classic pastry with filling. And as a secret Dulche de Leche lover the choice for feeling was easy. 

See how sticky filling was ? It was a-m-a-z-i-n-g filling...

Dulche de Leche Pudding (for 4 small ramekins)


1 cup of flour (about 250 gram)
100 gram of suet (if you can't find it - replace it with butter)
3 tablespoon of caster sugar
pinch of salt
50 ml of milk (or that amount to get pastry hard enough to place into ramekins)
150 gram of condensed milk tube (sweetened one!)

Mix flour with sugar and salt. Chop with suet and add milk to get pudding dough (easy to roll and quite stiff).

Cool in fridge. 

Now time for secret - easy to make Dulche de Leche. Usually I make one with sweetened 450 gram of canned milk, boiling it in shimmering water for 1,5-2 hours (40-45 minutes for 150 gram tube). But now, since pudding will be steamed on their own for some amount of time, I had to change this process. I just

boiled it for 10 minutes, so its changed color from white to light brown. But still it wasn't Dulche. 

Divide dough into 4 ramekins (left pastry enough to make 4 tops) and place runny milk into those. Make toppings. Be sure it's closed very good - without any holes.

Place into steamer over a pan with shimmering water. Steam for about 30 minutes - check if it's ready, if not steam for another 5-7 minutes. Steaming time depends on how big your ramekins are and how thick you rolled your dough.

The verdict: i still prefer baking pastry not steaming but it was great lesson, plus i liked how easy it was and messy-free.

I like the idea so much that i made additional pudding - this time sponge one with strawberries on a top. I make little twist here by replacing 50-60 grams of flour with Azuki beans puree. Recipe here.