Betty is my husband’s grandfather Theo’s sister. If you know my recipe ‘Lorna’s Scones’, Betty is Lorna’s older sister. Lorna was a great cook, and so was Betty. This is one of her recipes. This pudding is supposed to be steamed in the traditional method, that takes 2 & 1/2 hours. That is not energy efficient. I steamed it in my method and it took 40 minutes today, and I was happy with the result. However, the cake was very sweet and I decided to reduce the amount of Sugar for this recipe, but my husband said it was delicious as it was.

Makes

18cm OR smaller Round Cake Tin
*Note: You may prefer a traditional Pudding Mould if you have it.

Ingredients

1 cup Mixed Fruit
3/4 cup Sugar *can be reduced to 1/2 cup
1/2 cup grated Carrot *You would need 1 medium Carrot
40g (2 Australian tablespoons) Butter
1 cup Milk
1 teaspoon Mixed Spice *OR mix of Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Clove, etc.
1 teaspoon Bi-Carb Soda
*Note: I added 1 pinch Salt as well, but Salt was not included in the original recipe.
1 cup Self-Raising Flour

Method
  1. Place all ingredients except for Self-Raising Flour, that you will add at the end, in a saucepan, bring to the boil, then remove from the heat. Set aside and cool slightly.
  2. Line the base and sides of a cake tin with baking paper. If you use a Pudding Mould, butter the inside very well.
  3. When the mixture is slightly cooled, but it should be still warm, sift in Self-Raising Flour, and mix well. Pour into the prepared cake tin.
  4. Heat the steamer with plenty of water. I used a large pot with a steaming rack. *Note: You can add boiling water while steaming.
  5. Carefully place the cake tin into the steamer, cover with lid and cook for 40-50 minutes OR until cooked through. *Note: I recommend to wrap the lid with tea towel or large cloth, so that water won’t drip onto the cake. Make sure the tea towel won’t touch the cake.
  6. *Note: The original recipe says you need to steam 2 & 1/2 hours.
  7. Serve with Custard Sauce OR Cream.