Top 10 winter pudding recipes

Brrrrr, it's chilly out. Let us warm ourselves up with a huge portion of hearty pudding. Choose from our 10 favourite winter warmers.

Spotted dick

This dish (pictured above) was renamed ‘Spotted Richard’ and then ‘Sultana Sponge’ at a Welsh council canteen, after the catering staff complained of ‘immature comments’ from council staff… but it soon got its original name back again! Serve with a knob of butter and golden syrup.

Clootie dumpling

Scotland’s traditional suet pudding is rich with suet, spices and dried fruit and it’s the perfect pud for celebrating Burn’s Night or Hogmanay. “The clatter and bubble of a suet pudding boiling in a pot can warm a person faster than any radiator can,” says recipe author Jassy Davis.

Lemon bread and butter pudding

Oh, my kingdom for a slice of bread and butter pudding! What a classic: stale bread, milk, cream, vanilla, sugar and (in this case) a spoonful of lemon curd make for a delightful dessert, which is stodgy enough to keep you feel insulated until January. Serve with cream.

Mixed berry clafoutis

A delicious combination of creamy custardy batter and tart fruit, clafoutis is a classic and makes an indulgent end to any meal. You could make it with literally any fruit you want: figs, gooseberries, and slightly pre-cooked apples are good places to start.

Sticky toffee pudding

Sticky toffee pudding has all the stomach-slaying punch of a traditional British pud, but being baked rather than steamed, and then slicked with a sweet sauce, it’s much more good-natured than a suet-heavy spotted dick or jam roly poly. Make your sauce from just cream, butter and sugar.

Sussex pond pudding

A thick beef suet crust standing guard around a pulpy lemon, with a stream of buttery brown sauce pouring from its heart, Sussex Pond Pudding is never going to win ‘most beautiful dessert’ in a pudding parade. However, it's the gorgeous, syrupy lemon taste that counts. 

Baked rice pudding

This nostalgic rice pudding recipe provides the goodness of calcium as well as providing one of your five a day. It is low in fat and although sugar is added, some of the sweetness comes from the sugars naturally present in the plums. Enjoy in front of the telly.

Hot chocolate pudding

Chef Bruce Poole on his hot choc pud: “It is a pud I never tire of and if one thinks of nuts, crunchy caramel, hot chocolate sauce, pudding and cream, what’s not to like?” Quite right Bruce… plus it keeps well in the fridge if you can’t finish it all off. Decorate with a blob of ice cream. 

Apricot crumble

This is the quintessential British never-fails-to-please pudding. It’s also sensible, by which I mean that it isn’t expensive and it is a great vehicle for celebrating gluts of fruits. The only thing to remember is that your fruit must cook to tenderness in the time it takes the crumble to become golden. 

Citrus sponge

These fruity little sponges are easy to make and deliciously warming on a cold day. You can soak the raisins in the sherry for as long as you like beforehand. Don’t be shy and think there’s too much liquid when you mix them in with the batter – the sponge will soak it all up. 

You might also like

Pear pudding recipe

Tea custard and crumble desserts