Separate 4 eggs putting the yolks into a large bowl.
Add the caster sugar (30g) and whisk until combined.
Add the plain flour (30g) and vanilla extract (½ tsp) and whisk until combined.
Gently heat the milk (300ml) until warm but not boiling and then gradually add it into the egg yolk mixture a bit at a time whisking in each addition completely before adding more.
Once combined, pour the mixture back into the saucepan and return to a very gentle heat. Continue to cook, whisking continuously, until the custard has reached your desired thickness (this usually takes about 10 minutes).
Add the orange oil (¼ tsp) and brandy (2 tbsp) and whisk to combine.
Remove from the heat and pour the custard into a bowl or jug and cover with clingfilm. It's important that the clingfilm is in full contact with the surface of the custard to stop a skin forming.
Refrigerate the custard until you're ready to use it.
Once you're ready to serve, pop the custard into a pan and gently heat until warm (whisking constantly). If you find that the custard gets a little too thick then simply thin it out with a little extra milk.
Can be prepared a few hours in advance and reheated when you're ready to serve.
In this recipe, I've assumed that you're making the custard in advance to reheat later. If you're making it to serve immediately then simply stop after step 6.
CHEATS TIP - If all this custard making sounds too much like hard work then simply buy pre-made custard, add the brandy and orange oil and pretend you're a domestic goddess with your fancy Christmas pudding custard :-)
Serving: 1portion | Calories: 177kcal | Carbohydrates: 17g | Protein: 5.9g | Fat: 7.3g | Saturated Fat: 3.3g | Sodium: 40mg | Fiber: 0.2g | Sugar: 11.3g
Any nutritional information provided is the estimated nutritional information per serving. Please refer to my guide to Charlotte’s Lively Kitchen nutritional information if you would like to learn more about how this is calculated.
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: British
Keyword: Christmas
Author: Charlotte Oates