As John Lennon once sang:
So this is Christmas
And what have you done
Another year over
And a new one just begun
And so this is Christmas
I hope you have fun
The near and the dear ones
The old and the young
The bursts of cranberries within the puddings are a real treat, and match perfectly with the chocolately batter. They are not as heavy as a pudding would be, and look ultra cute!
I used spearmint leaves instead of fresh bay leaves, which adds a nice minty treat after eating the mini pudding.
Ultra-Choc Christmas Puddings
150g butter
100g dark chocolate, chopped
3 eggs, lightly beaten
1/3 cup (80g) sour cream
1 cup (150g) self-raising flour
1 tablespoon cocoa
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 cup (90g) almond meal
3/4 cup (165g) caster sugar
1/2 cup (75g) dried cranberries, plus extra to decorate
12 small fresh bay leaves (I used candy spearmint leaves instead)
Custard Icing
250g pure icing sugar, plus extra to dust
1 teaspoon custard powder
1. Preheat oven to 180°C or 160°C fan-forced. Grease a 12-hole, 1/3 cup-capacity non-stick or silicone muffin pan.
2. Melt butter and chocolate in a small saucepan on low heat, until smooth. Cool slightly. Add egg and sour cream and mix well. Sift together flour, cocoa and baking powder into a large bowl. Add almond meal, sugar and dried cranberries and mix well. Pour in chocolate mixture and stir until mixture is well combined.
3. Spoon in prepared pans, until three-quarters full. Bake for 15-20 mins, until cakes spring back when lightly touched. Cool in pan for 5 mins, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
4. Meanwhile, to make icing, sift icing sugar and custard powder into a medium bowl. Add 1-2 tablespoons of water, stirring, until thick. When puddings are cool, trim rounded tops and turn upside down onto a wire rack. Spoon over icing and press bay leaves and extra cranberries into icing. Stand until set. Dust with extra icing sugar to serve.
Makes 12.
Voila! Bon Appétit!
Aww these are so incredibly cute! They sound delicious too. Thanks for the recipe :)