Spent most of Saturday cooking, made Steak and Kidney Pudding, home made chips, mash, roast parsnips and carrots and a sour cream chocolate cake with sour cream icing. Had the rest of the family round for dinner and they all seemed to like it. The pudding was my mother's recipe and it turned out very well by all accounts - with the tail end of this cold hanging on my taste buds are rather dull at the moment so I couldn't tell for sure :).
Steak and Kidney Pudding Recipe
Equipment
Standard sized pudding bowl (type usually used for Christmas pud)
steamer or a large saucepan
large mixing bowl
rolling pin
tin foil
For the case
12oz/340g self raising flour
6oz/170g suet (beef or veggie)
pinch of salt
water to mix
Filling
450g braising steak
450g lamb or beef kidney
3 oxo cubes (or stock cubes of your choice)
hot water
In the large bowl mix the suet, salt and the flour together. Make a well in the centre and add a little water. Mix this in using a fork. Add more water bit by bit until the mixture is a firm dough.
Flour a board or the work top and roll out 3/4 of the dough into a 13inch round. Lay the dough over the pudding bowl and ease it into it so that it covers all sides. Do not worry if the pasty is not completely even - no one will mind :).
Chop and trim the steak into half inch cubes. Core and chop the kidney; if you like your kidney unobtrusive cut it very small, if you like to be able to find some cut it large. Personally I did a mixture because when small it disolves to make a very rich gravey, but I like to be able to find some chunks as well.
Mix the meat together and start to place in the pudding case. Grind some fresh black pepper over the meat as you layer it in. The meat should just about come to the top of the bowl.
Mix your stock cubes with your hot water and pour into the pudding over the meat, stiring if necessary to allow the water all the way to the bottom, until the pudding it almost full to the brim.
Take the rest of the pasty and roll into a round just bigger than the top of the pudding. Brush the edge of the pudding with water and then place the lid over top, pinching together the edges.
Cover the top of the pudding bowl with foil, making sure there is a pleat in the foil for expansion. You can tie the foil on at this point if you wish, but I find it more trouble than it's worth :).
Place the pudding bowl in the top of the steamer, or in the saucepan, then pour water into the bottom of the steamer, or around the bowl in the saucepan and place on the heat. Allow to steam for a minimum of five hours, topping up the water when necessary (usually at least once an hour).
Goes well with mashed potatos and just about any veg, and is nice served with a medium thick gravy over the veg.
The choccie cake was a Nigella recipe from her Domestic Goddess book. It was very, very sweet and although it was nice I wasn't overly impressed so I shalln't put the recipe up. If I come up with a version of it I really like, then I'll let the rest of you know ::g::.
Haven't seen last nights ep of Supernatural yet ... it's not fair how they put all the good things on at the same time. There is so little to watch most of the weekend and all the good things are on at 9 o'clock on a Sunday! Ah well, at least it means I can forward through the ads when we watch it this evening ::g::.
Now on to the birthdays. Many happy returns to:
remydesire for the 22nd,josephsaren for the 23rd,divine_evil and shytobeknown for the 25th,alyse for the 27th andsass_macfru for the 28th.I hope you all have lovely days.