This is one of the recipes that I am asked about most often and I never hesitate in giving it to people. It is tried and tested. It works. And I have no hesitation in saying that no one makes Christmas pudding as good as my Auntie Maureen. It is important to get the best fruit you can. In the restaurant we get ours from Peter Ward’s Country Choice in Nenagh, we make at least 100 plum puddings, using this recipe.

People often ask me why I steam it in the oven but it is for a simple practical reason – to prevent you steaming up the kitchen for hours. Serve warm or cold with lashings of custard or whipped cream with a spoonful of brandy butter alongside.

For plum pudding and Christmas cake the flavour only improves as time goes on, so it is best to make it a month before you plan to eat it. So really do try to make some time this weekend or the next. It is never too late but the earlier the better.

Happy cooking,

Neven

Auntie Maureen’s plum pudding

Makes two x 1.2 litre (2 pint) puddings

50g (2oz) plain flour

½ tsp ground mixed spice

½ tsp ground cloves

¼ tsp ground nutmeg

225g (8oz) sultanas

175g (6oz) butter, melted, plus extra for greasing

175g (6oz) fresh white breadcrumbs

175g (6oz) light brown sugar

175g (6oz) raisins

50g (2oz) currants

50g (2oz) candied mixed peel

50g (2oz) blanched almonds, chopped

½ apple, peeled, cored and diced

½ small carrot, grated

finely grated rind and juice of 1 lemon

2 eggs, lightly beaten

300ml (½ pint) stout

icing sugar, to decorate (optional)

custard or whipped cream and brandy butter, to serve

1 Sift together the flour, mixed spice, cloves and nutmeg. Add the sultanas, melted butter, breadcrumbs, sugar, raisins, currants, mixed peel, almonds, apple, carrot and the lemon rind and juice and mix until well combined. Gradually add the beaten eggs, stirring constantly, followed by the stout. Mix everything thoroughly and cover with a clean tea towel, then leave in a cool place overnight.

2 Use the fruit mixture to fill two 1.2-litre (2 pint) greased pudding bowls. Cover with a double thickness of greaseproof paper and tin foil, then tie tightly under the rim with string.

3 To cook, preheat the oven to 150°C (300°F, gas mark two). Stand each pudding basin in a large cake tin three-quarters full of boiling water, then cook in the oven for six to eight hours (or you can steam them for six hours in the usual way). Cool and re-cover with clean greaseproof paper. Again, store in a cool, dry place.

4 On Christmas Day, re-cover with greaseproof paper and foil. Steam for two to three hours, until completely cooked through and tender. Decorate with a light dusting of icing sugar, if liked.

5 To serve, cut the plum pudding into slices and arrange on serving plates. Have a separate jug of the custard or a dish of whipped cream and another of brandy butter so that everyone can help themselves.

I have no hesitation in saying that no one makes Christmas pudding as good as my Auntie Maureen

Christmas cake

Make this cake as early as you can to allow for the flavours to mature. Cake-decorating ingredients will all be available in store in the weeks coming up to the festive season.

Makes one x 20cm (8in) cake

225g (8oz) plain flour

500g (18oz) dried fruits, such as sultanas, raisins, currants, mixed peel, ready-to-eat apricots or prunes

finely grated rind and juice of 1 lemon

175g (6oz) butter, softened, plus extra for greasing

175g (6oz) light brown sugar

4 eggs, beaten

1 tsp ground cinnamon

½ tsp freshly grated nutmeg

100g (4oz) toasted flaked almonds

1 x 250g (9oz) packet of golden marzipan

2-4 tbsp whiskey or brandy

450g (1lb) ready-to-roll fondant icing

cornflour, for dusting

holly leaves and berries, to decorate

1 Preheat the oven to 160°C (325°F, gas mark three). Line the base and sides of a 20cm (8in) loose-bottomed cake tin with non-stick baking paper.

2 Sift the flour into a bowl and set aside. Chop up the dried fruit so that everything is equal in size and nothing is too large and toss with the lemon rind and juice and set aside.

3 Cream the butter and sugar together in a food mixer (or with a hand-held whisk) until pale and creamy. Add the eggs bit by bit with a little of the flour each time, beating after each addition. Add the remaining flour with the spices and fold through to combine. Add the dried fruit and lemon mixture with the flaked almonds, stirring well to combine.

4 Finally, cut half of the marzipan into small cubes and gently fold it into the cake mixture. Using a spatula, transfer to the prepared tin and smooth down the top. Bake for about two hours, until a skewer comes out clean when inserted into the centre. Leave to cool in the tin, then carefully remove and place on a flat plate. Prick the surface with a fine skewer and spoon over the whiskey or brandy. Leave for one hour to allow the alcohol to soak in.

5 When completely cold, wrap in greaseproof paper and overwrap in foil. Leave in a cool, dry place to mature for at least two weeks or up to three months before applying the icing.

6 About a week before the cake is required, cover the top with the remaining marzipan. Roll out the ready-to-roll icing on a clean work surface dusted with cornflour to a circle slightly larger than the top of the cake. Position on top of the marzipan, then smooth and neaten the edges. Decorate with the holly leaves and berries.

7 To store for one to two days, secure a strip of foil around the exposed sides of the cake. Place the cake on a serving plate or cake stand and decorate with ribbons around the edge, if liked. Serve straight to the table.