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Desserts: Afters thoughts
Traditional puddings make a great finale to any meal, especially when there's a chill in the air. From steamed treacle sponge pud to tangy lemon meringue pie and creamy, old-fashioned rice pudding, here are Delia's versions of some old favourites.
Old English Apple Hat
This is no trouble at all to make, and you can leave it gently steaming away while you go for a brisk walk in the wintry chill, knowing all that soothing, comforting pleasure is awaiting you on your return.
Rich Bread-and-Butter Pudding
Never fear if you have some stale bread that needs using up. This is a light delicious pudding with a lovely dark toasted nutmeg crust.
Spotted Dick Rides Again
This was once a very famous pudding, but it's now sadly forgotten – except by a certain supermarket that has a problem with its name! Just the thing to serve for Sunday lunch after a freezing cold, wintry walk. The ultimate comfort pudding.
Rich Bread and Butter Pudding
Never fear if you have some stale bread that needs using up. This is a light delicious pudding with a lovely dark toasted nutmeg crust.
Butterscotch and Banana Trifle with Madeira
There are endless variations on the trifle theme, and this is the latest Delia version. It's wickedly rich and quite wonderful – not for an everyday event, but perfect sometimes for those really special days.
Melting Chocolate Puddings
This, I suspect, could be the chocolate recipe for the beginning of the 21st century – very light, very chocolatey individual baked puddings that have a melted fudge-chocolate sauce inside that oozes out as you put your spoon in.
Old-fashioned Rice Pudding
This is the real thing – a mass of creamy rice and a thick brown speckled nutmeg skin. Don't forget to take a sharp knife and scrape off all the bits of caramelised skin that stick to the edges.
Individual Queen of Puddings
I think this works well and looks very pretty in individual dishes if you're serving it for a special occasion. Otherwise you can make one large pudding in an oval or round dish, about 2 pints (1.2 litres) capacity.
Little Sticky Toffee Puddings with Pecan Toffee Sauce
This is as wicked as it sounds. A truly delectable combination of flavours and textures that are light and melt in the mouth.
Lemon Meringue Pie
This famous English classic needs a revival. It is supremely light, squashy and fragrant with lemons. Why did we ever forget about it?
Traditional Apple Pie with a Cheddar Crust
This is a huge family apple pie, which I often call 'More Apple Than Pie' as it has four pounds of apples in it. Putting Cheddar in the crust gives it a lovely crisp, flaky texture without a strong cheese flavour.
Steamed Treacle Sponge Pudding
Treacle sponge pudding does not sound as sophisticated as, say, a Marbled Marquise with three types of chocolate served with a coffee bean sauce. The fact is, though, that treacle pudding probably tastes a whole lot better and, dare I say, could end up being a far more sophisticated option simply because of its rarity.
Individual Sussex Pond Puddings with Lemon Butter Sauce
This is one of the truly great English puddings, which has, sadly, fallen victim to the health lobby. Originally, a whole lemon was placed inside, along with butter, and when the pudding was opened, all the buttery juices spilled out, creating a 'pond' all around it.
