Vegetarian Cuisine

PLUM PUDDING

Ingredients:
200 g (7 oz) chopped dates
200 g (7 oz) raisins
200 g (7 oz) currants
200 g (7 oz) sultanas
100 g (4 oz) prunes, chopped
100 g (4 oz) mixed peel
225 g (8 oz) Barbados sugar (or use extra dates and barley malt syrup instead)
¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
½ teaspoon mixed spice
175 g (6 oz) wholewheat breadcrumbs
50 g (2 oz) chopped almonds
225 g (8 oz) vegetable suet
50 g (2 oz) wholewheat flour
285 ml (9 ½ fl oz) orange juice, plus extra, if necessary

Preparation:
1. Wash the dried fruit and place it in a large mixing bowl. Stir in all the dry ingredients and then the orange juice. Cover and leave to stand overnight.
2. The next day, stir the mixture – the consistency should be soft and firm, not runny. Add more orange juice if necessary. Press the mixture into a greased 1.2 litre (2 pint) pudding basin. Cover the top with two layers of greaseproof paper or a pudding cloth and secure with kitchen string.
3. Stand the pudding basin in a large pan with 7.5-10 cm (3-4 in) of boiling water in the bottom. Cover the pan tightly and steam the pudding over a low heat for about two hours, checking from time to time and adding more water to prevent it from boiling dry. Turn out and serve.

As you proceed onwards along the spiritual path, joy, peace, and bliss deepen and deepen. – Sri Swami Sivananda