Mincemeat Pudding

I made my own mincemeat for last Christmas and afterwards found I had a surplus, so I tried this odd recipe from an old cookery book.

1 lb mincemeat
1/2 pint stout
1 beaten egg
4 tablespoonfuls  flour
4 tablespoonfuls breadcrumbs

Mix stout, mincemeat and egg in a bowl.

Then gradually sir in the flour, followed by the breadcrumbs - I used a simple non-rotary whisk.

That produces a brown liquid of unappetising appearance. Don't be discouraged. Pour it into a buttered basin, then steam for 2 1/2 hours. I put it in a colander over a saucepan of boiling water, using my largest saucepan, and putting the lid on.

The pudding solidifies, but has quite a soft texture. It tastes a little like Christmas pudding, but is much lighter and would would make a good substitute for that.

I ate mine with custard made with custard powder, but imaginative readers will be able to think of alternatives.

I used Guinness the stringency of which balanced the sweetness of the mincemeat. With a sweeter stout the pudding would have been too sweet.