GUINNESS WHOLEGRAIN BREAD
Sticky Guinness Wholegrain Bread Pudding with Mascarpone Cream
Makes 8 individual 7fl oz puddings
INGREDIENTS
100g/4oz ready-to-eat dates, stoned and chopped
3 tbsp freshly grated root ginger
120ml/4fl oz Guinness Beer
200g/8oz Guinness Wholegrain Bread crumbed in a food processor
75g/3oz ground almonds
2 tsp cocoa powder
2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tbsp plain flour
Pinch salt
150g/5oz unsalted butter, diced, plus extra for greasing
50g/2oz light muscovado sugar
5 eggs, separated
100g/4oz caster sugar, plus extra for dusting the pudding moulds
METHOD
Preheat the oven to 190C/375F/Gas 5. Place the dates in a bowl and add the fresh ginger and Guinness. Set aside for 30 minutes to soak and to let flavours develop. Grease the 8 individual pudding moulds with butter, then dust with caster sugar.
Place the Guinness and soda breadcrumbs, almonds, cocoa powder, ground ginger, cinnamon, flour and salt. Stir until well combined, and then stir in the dates and Guinness mixture.
Place the butter and muscovado sugar in a bowl and cream together until light and fluffy. Gradually add the egg yolks, whisking until smooth after each addition. Fold into the pudding mixture.
Whisk the egg whites in a separate bowl with the caster sugar until firm and glossy. Fold the meringue into the pudding mixture. Fill the prepared moulds almost to the top and cover with a piece of greased tinfoil. Arrange in a roasting tin, and half fill with boiling water. Bake for 30-40 minutes until a fine skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean. Remove from the oven, gently loosen around the edges with a small knife, cool slightly and then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Wrap each pudding in Clingfilm and either chill or freeze until required.
To serve, gently heat in the microwave and serve with a big dollop of mascarpone cream
Mascarpone cream
1 x 250g (8oz) tub of mascarpone cheese
30g (1 oz) caster sugar
1 drop of vanilla extract or the seeds of 1 vanilla pod
150ml whipping cream, whipped
Place the mascarpone, the sugar, vanilla and whipping cream into a large mixing bowl and whisk vigorously by hand for a minute until you have a softly whipped cream.
