Christmas Pudding (British Steamed — Full Method)

Christmas pudding — the dense, dark, steamed fruit pudding of the British Christmas table — is one of the most technically demanding and culturally significant seasonal preparations in the world. It is made weeks or months before Christmas ('Stir-up Sunday', the last Sunday before Advent, is the traditional making day), and improves dramatically with time as the brandy and dark sugars continue to develop the fruit. The preparation: dried fruit (currants, sultanas, raisins, mixed peel, glacé cherries) soaked in brandy or stout overnight; combined with suet, breadcrumbs, spices, treacle, eggs, and sometimes carrots and almonds; packed into greased pudding bowls; and steamed for 6–8 hours. It is then stored, re-steamed for 2–3 hours on Christmas Day, and served flambéed in brandy at the table — one of British cooking's great theatrical moments.