I’ve looked at this Jamie Oliver recipe a hundred times (it’s from his Happy Days with the Naked Chef cookbook), but this was the first time I’d ever made it. Which is completely daft, because we always have every single ingredient in the pantry – it could have been invented with our kitchen in mind.
It’s sweet, simple and comforting – perfect for an easy Sunday evening dessert.
- 4 large (59g) eggs
- 570ml (21/3 cups) milk
- 115g (4oz) breadcrumbs
- 225g (8oz) sugar
- 4 level tablespoons jam (I used Pete’s homemade raspberry jam)
Note: I made breadcrumbs from some leftover sourdough – I simply blitzed broken pieces in the food processor. We fried the leftovers in a little olive oil and scattered them over pasta – very naughty, I know.
1. Preheat the oven to 150C (300F). Separate three of the four eggs.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the three egg yolks and one whole egg. Add the milk, breadcrumbs and 85g of sugar. Give it a good stir to combine.
3. Spread the jam evenly over the base of a pie dish. Pour the egg and milk mixture over the jam, and bake for one hour, or until the custard sets.
4. Whisk the remaining three egg whites until stiff, then slowly add the remaining 140g sugar, beating continuously. I used a mix of caster sugar and vanilla sugar for this part. Beat until the whites are thick and glossy.
5. Dollop the egg white mixture onto the top of the custard, then bake in the oven for a further 15 – 20 minutes until the meringue is set and lightly browned. Be warned, it will rise up quite a lot in the oven, so make sure you leave enough room between the racks. Serve with a little whipped cream – there isn’t any butter in the pudding, so you can have just a little cream without too much guilt!
Fig Jam and Lime Cordial 
That looks delicious. Will have to add it to the list. I even has some of Pete’s jam to try it with thanks to the lovely jar you gave me!
Spice Girl, as I said above to Jo, I think it will work with LF milk as well. It was very moreish, but possibly a bit sweet for your tastes – you might want to cut the sugar back just a little? It’s just the easiest dessert to make. Btw, I tried frying red cabbage in cumin – inspired by your cauli recipe – worked a treat!
Another great dessert!
I have never heard of King of Puds before.
Jo, apparently it’s supposed to be called “Queen of Puddings”, but JO reworked it. It was seriously yum! It’s good for those of us who have sourdough bread and homemade jam in the pantry – AND I think it would work fine with lactose free milk.
Is this supposed to be served warm or cold, or will either do? I just made it, and I’m not sure whether to serve it NOW or wait ’til it cools.
Oh, the anguish!
B
We usually serve it hot, but it’s very nice warm as well! :)