Syrup Sponge and Custard

Approx cost: €2.00
Approx calories (per serving): ~600
Approx preparation time: 40 minutes

This is hardly a healthy dessert, but let’s face it – if you wanted to be healthy it’d probably better to skip dessert in the first place. This is a really warming, satisfying pudding and the great thing is that cooking time for the pudding itself is only 3 minutes (thanks microwaves!). Served up with some amazing home-made custard – none of this bright yellow instant slop – and you’ve got a real good British dessert.

Ingredients

Ingredients you'll need for this dish

For the sponge pudding
– 100g Butter
– 100g Caster Sugar
– 100g Self-Raising Flour (or Plain Flour + 1.5 tsps Baking Powder)
– 2 Eggs
– Juice from half a lemon
– ~4 tbsps Golden Syrup (or other similar syrup, or even honey)

For the custard
– 250ml Milk
– 2-3 tbsps Cream
– 20g Caster Sugar
– 2 egg-yolks
– 1 Vanilla Pod (or, if not available, substitute the caster sugar above with Vanilla Sugar)
– 1 tsp Cornflour

Instructions

1. Starting with the sponge pudding: Add the butter and sugar into a mixing basin and mix together until pale and fluffy. Break in the eggs and mix with the butter and sugar. Add in the flour and mix around until thoroughly blended and finally add in the lemon juice and stir into the mix. Take a small microwave-safe bowl which is about twice the volume of the total amount of sponge pudding mix you have and rub butter over the sides of the bowl. Spoon in all the mixture and cover tightly with plastic film. Poke a few tiny holes in the top using a sharp knife and set aside.
   
   
   
   

2. Moving on to the custard: Add the milk and cream into a saucepan. Cut the vanilla pod lengthways in half and scrape out the seeds in the middle. Put the seeds and the pieces of pod into the milk/cream mix. Place on the stove on a medium heat and start to heat up. Meanwhile, put the two egg-yolks into a bowl and add in the sugar and cornflour and mix well.
   
   
   
   




3. When the milk and cream mix is starting to simmer, pick out the pieces of vanilla pod and set aside and then pour the liquid onto the egg yolks and sugar, stirring constantly. When well mixed transfer back to the saucepan and return to the heat, stirring constantly until the custard has thickened up. While you’re doing this, put the bowl with the sponge cake mix inside into the microwave and cook on the highest setting for around 3.5 minutes.
   
   
   
   




4. When the sponge cake has finished, turn out onto a plate and spoon the Golden Syrup (or honey) on top. Cut into portions (Usually serves around 4) and pour the custard on top and enjoy!

Nom nom