Sussex pond pudding

Step 1

Sift the flour into a large bowl, then stir through the suet. Quickly mix in the milk äóñ enough so it just comes together as a soft (but not sticky) dough. You might not need all the milk. Remove a quarter of the dough. Roll the larger piece out on a lightly floured surface to form a 30cm circle. Use this to line a 1.5 litre greased pudding basin.

Step 2

Spoon 75g butter and 75g sugar into the base, then put the pierced lemon on top. Add the remaining 75g butter and the sugar. Brush the exposed dough with water, then roll out the remaining dough to form a lid. Put over the top of the filling and press the edges together to seal. Trim off excess pastry and discard.

Step 3

Grease a square of foil, top with a layer of baking paper and grease this as well. Fold a pleat into the centre and lay, greased-side of the baking paper down, over the basin. Scrunch around the sides and secure with a piece of string. Cut another piece of string just over twice the diameter of the basin. Fold this in half. Attach at opposite ends of the basin to make a handle.

Step 4

Put an upturned saucer into the bottom of a large saucepan, balance the basin on top and pour in enough boiling water from the kettle to come halfway up the sides of the basin. Cover the pan with a lid, bring to a simmer and steam for 3Œ_ hours.

Step 5

Carefully remove from the pan using the handle, remove the paper, foil and string, loosen the sides, then invert onto your serving plate.