How to Choose the Perfect Pudding Store Online

Puddings are a perfect treat for any holiday or event that you are holding for family and friends. Most families have their own recipe for traditional puddings. Such a tradition is usually passed down from generation to generation. However, they may lack the time to prepare the pudding while some other people do not even have the recipes for pudding. 

Does that mean they have to miss out on the heavenly deliciousness of some healthy and delicious pudding? Certainly not!

This is where the services of pudding shops and bakeries come in handy! There are some renowned traditional puddings makers who are well known for making delicious puddings and still retain a homely taste. Many online shops are now making delicious puddings offering a vast selection of high quality and delicious traditional puddings.

On the contrary to what most people think, most of these online shops have many years of experience. Most of them usually have started their business on brick-and-mortar premises then open an online wing. Below are factors to go through when choosing delicious and traditional puddings shop:

Sample Different Bakers

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It is usually advisable to sample different bakers' tasty puddings before settling on the one you can use all year round.  With the advancement of technology, you can now find numerous shops online that will fulfil your sweet carving. These shops will deliver whatever that you buy right to your doorstep. In addition, you are given many different payment plan options.

Try Their Quality and Taste

The taste and the quality of the puddings is another thing one has to check before settling on a baker. When buying your traditional or gourmet puddings from an online shop you can read the reviews that have been written by other people and find out what they say.

Source of Ingredients

It is also advisable to check where the baker buys their ingredients from. Make sure they buy the ingredients from local markets. This is because most products from the local markets are usually fresh and of good quality. If not ensure that their source of ingredients is a good one.

Preparation Process

Ensure the bakers follow a strict hygienic process to make the gourmet puddings. Talk to the employees about their preparation process. If you are buying from an online shop you can call them, email them or even get this information from reviews posted by other buyers.

Supply All Year Around

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Finding a shop that bakes tasty puddings all year round is the best option. This will ensure that you get to enjoy your favourite puddings any time you have an event. Traditional puddings are an excellent way to make your guest and family enjoy what you prepare for them. There is a wide range of flavour available that you can purchase from gourmet puddings shop.  

Gourmet puddings are time-consuming to make, so at Pud For All Seasons, we have done it all for you! Just like Grandma used to. The varieties of puddings you can find here ranged from; Peach and almond, double choc and orange with Cointreau, traditional plum pudding, cranberry and white chocolate, date and butterscotch, choc cherry and coconut and many more.

True to the saying that “the proof of the pudding is in its taste”, At very affordable prices ours include free range eggs, Australian Dried Fruits, Apples and Oranges direct from the growers and bread comes from the local baker and is crumbed by us! Our Puddings are superb not only for Christmas but also for any other special occasion.

Pudding Recipes Which Simply Delight!

Desserts have a way of combining taste and aroma to enliven the mood. With the differences in flavour and ingredients found in the wide variety of delights, there are some that stand out to state their excellence. Here you'll find the methods of preparing 3 kinds of puddings which will simply take your breath away with each spoonful!

The Mocha Fudge Pudding 

The Mocha fudge pudding takes around 3 hours to prepare and 15 minutes to cook which brings us to a total time of 3 hours and 15 minutes. Once made following the recipe below, it should serve 6.

You'll need -

• 3 cups of whole milk
• 1 cup of strong coffee
• 1/2 cup of cornstarch
• 1/2 cup of sugar
• 1 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions -

1. In a small bowl, combine 1/2 cup milk and cornstarch. Then use a fork or whisk until it smooths out all the lumps.
2. Combine 2 cups of milk, sugar and coffee in a medium saucepan and cook until it is just about to boil.
3. Keep the flame at a medium to prevent the milk from boiling. Whisk in the cornstarch mixture to prevent the formation of lumps.
4. Add the chocolate chips when the mixture begins to thicken. Stir the chips until they melt completely and the pudding is smooth and thickened.
5. Pour the pudding in 6 bowls. Place a plastic wrap on top of the pudding before refrigerating for at least 3-4 hours. 

 

Sticky Date Puddings with Spiced Chocolate Caramel Sauce

This one takes 20 minutes to prepare and 40 minutes to cook. After it's made following the recipe below, it should serve 6.

You'll need -

• 2 cups of pitted dates, chopped up coarsely
• A cup of boiling water
• a teaspoon of Chinese five spice
• a teaspoon of ground cinnamon
• 150g of butter ( 70g chopped and 80g softened)
• Creme fraiche, to serve
• A teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda
• a cup of brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 3/4 cup of self-raising flour
• 100g of dark chocolate, chopped
• half a cup of plain flour
• 3/4 cup of thin cream

Directions -

1. Firstly, pre-heat the oven to 180°C. Grease and line the base of six 185ml dariole moulds with baking paper.
2. Combine the dates, water and soda in a heatproof bowl keep it aside for 10 minutes for the dates to soften. Then mash it smooth with a fork.
3. Beat the sugar and butter till pale and creamy, using an electric mixer. Add the eggs and beat well. Fold the date mixture and the combined flours. Spoon the mixture into prepared pans. Bake in oven for 30 minutes until the surface springs back when touched lightly. Keep the baked mixture aside for 5 minutes and then cool.
4. Combine the chocolate, cream, five spice, cinnamon in a saucepan over low heat. Stil for 5 minutes until the chocolate melts and mixture turns smooth. Add the butter and sugar and then stir again for 5 minutes until the sugar dissolves. Remove from heat.
5. You're ready to serve now! Drizzle sauce over the pudding and serve with creme fraiche.

Christmas Pudding

Making a delicious traditional Christmas pudding can be difficult but it's worth a try. You'll find some of the best traditional Christmas puddings at Stephen's Fine Foods. They've won multiple awards at the Royal Hobart Fine Food Awards for their wonderful fine food delights. Let's give their puddings a try!

Image Source:  anticorestaurants, hellyeahhitsvegan

Are You Reading The Nutrition Labels On Your Food Correctly?

In recent years, people have begun to recognise the value of incorporating a dairy and/or gluten-free diet for a healthier and better life, especially those that are sensitive to such ingredients. Others, particularly those who are dieting, may Of course, if you are going down this path it’s important that you understand what kinds of food you can eat and that you should avoid.

The ability to read and understand nutrition labels that are found on many foods is therefore very important. This article goes through a few of the considerations you need to make and things you need to remember that you may have overlooked.

Organic Doesn’t Necessarily Means Healthy

Possibly as a result of clever marketing, many of us tend to associate these terms with healthy foods, without considering the fact that there is really no intrinsic connection between the two. Gluten-free foods can still be fattening or unhealthy, they are simply free of the gluten protein that causes some people health problems. In much the same way, there are plenty of organically grown products out there that aren’t necessarily suitable for someone that is trying to eat healthy.

The same goes for claims such as ‘no added-sugar’, which is often found on the label of many foods that are already naturally high in sugar, and should be avoided if you’re dieting.

Understand Your Food & Fiber

Natural fiber is important for two reasons; first of all, it can reduce risk of high cholesterol and various diseases, and second, it can help make you feel full for longer, meaning you’ll eat less throughout the day if you’re on a diet.

Bread, pasta and other carbohydrates that you’re eating should have around 3-4g of fibre per serving. Avoid added-fibre products if you can.

There’s Fat And Then There’s Fat

When reading food labels, keep in mind that fat comes in a number of different forms, with some being worse than others. Trans fats and saturated fats should be avoided for a healthy diet. Check the fat content - if it’s mainly coming from unsaturated fat it’s probably okay.

Trans fat and hydrogenated oils are what you really want to steer clear of, as they’ve been shown to contribute to bad cholesterol, which can be a real health concern down the line.

Try To Avoid Too Much Sodium

Sodium, which is found in high amounts in packaged and highly processed food, is something you want to watch out for. Too much has been shown to contribute to heart disease and a higher blood pressure. When it comes to sodium, you don’t want to exceed around 2,300mg per day no matter who you are, so if a single serving exceeds more than a third of this, it’s probably a good idea to avoid it.

Be Aware Of Your Recommended Daily Intake

Labels can be misleading as they may list ingredients and nutrients as a percentage of your daily recommended intake. Of course, the numbers should not always be trusted as they are usually relevant to the ‘average adult’ for example, when everyone’s particular needs are actually quite different.

If you’re serious about adopting a healthy diet, there are helpful guides for recommended number of serves for adults   that can give you a good idea of which kinds of foods and how much of these foods you should be eating according to your age and gender.

You’ll be pleased to here that if you are gluten or dairy intolerant, Pud For All Season’s offers a range of puddings and other delicious products that you can enjoy. While our products are healthy, it always pays to read the label and make sure you’re not overdoing it. It’s always important to have a balanced diet, so moderation is the key!

3 Interesting Christmas Pudding Traditions

As we’ve discussed in previous posts on this blog, the origin of the christmas or plum pudding goes back centuries and is steeped in tradition. In fact, this delicious sweet has evolved in many ways here in Australia and the ways we serve and enjoy it are quite different than in Europe for instance. Through its history, many different traditions and customs have emerged, some of which we still observe today. Let’s take a look at some of the most memorable and well-known christmas pudding traditions.

Stir up Sunday

Most of pudding traditions find their origins a few hundred years ago, where cooking up a plum pudding became an important part of the Christmas season.
Much like today, Christmas puddings were enjoyed in the lead up to Christmas as well as on the day of Christmas itself. ‘Stir up Sunday’ as it came to be known, was a day a few weeks before Christmas on which many families would prepare their puddings for the festive season.

This was something of a special day of togetherness for families who would gathered in their kitchens and were actively involved in the pudding-making process.

Wishing

Stir up Sunday itself had some traditions as well.

For instance, everyone in the family - including the servants - would stir the pudding mixture for good luck throughout the day. Stirring the pudding was actually quite hard work, which probably explains how the tradition originated as everyone invariably shared the load.

Each person would make three wishes while stirring up the batter and according to the custom, one of the three would come true in the coming year.

Coins and other items in the pudding

There were a number of traditions pertaining to puddings that centered around the notion of good fortune. Small items would frequently be added to the mixture - from coins to chicken wishbones - with the idea being that whoever’s portion of pudding contained them would receive good luck or wealth for the coming year.

Other items would symbolize something else. For instance, a thimble - generally used for sewing - would be a sign of thrift (or good use of money) for the finder. A ring would foretell of an upcoming marriage in the year ahead and an anchor charm meant that the finder would be safe and protected.

Interestingly, the remnants of these traditions remain to this day. While most people don’t put coins in the pudding itself, some will place sterilised coins under servings of pudding to symbolise good luck. However, nowadays people will often prefer ready-made traditional plum puddings rather than mixing up the batch themselves. There are plenty of great plum pudding options available for order online!

5 Ways to Give your Homemade Cakes a Gourmet Edge

Ever wondered how to give your cakes a professional finish? Creating gourmet cakes at home is easier than you think. We’ve rounded up five of the best techniques for creating cakes that look like they’re straight out of an award-winning bakery.

Whether you’re new to cake decorating, or a seasoned pro - our tips are perfect for giving you something new to challenge yourself with. So roll up those sleeves, and get stuck into five simple ways to give your cakes a gourmet edge.

Use the dripping technique

 

You know when you sit down for a meal in a fancy restaurant and your plate is decorated with creatively drizzled sauce? Think of the drip technique as an extension of that - but with cake.

The trick to the drip technique is to get it to look casual, yet intentional. To create this technique, make a white chocolate ganache and add the colouring of your choice. You’ll want to keep the ganache at the right temperature so it’s runny, but not liquid. Giving it short, sharp blasts in the microwave as you decorate each section can help.

Use the dripping technique to create interesting colour combinations, with both contrasting and complementary colours. Chocolate drip cakes are immensely popular, although you could try out metallic drips of gold, silver or bronze by using cake dust in your ganache mixture.

Go to the dark side

 

Black icing is big news this year, so give it a try. You can choose to either make the entire cake covered in black icing or cover sections. Black and white cakes, with one additional accent colour - such as pink, blue or gold - work really well. Or go all black, with bright, multi-coloured detail.

Top it with a sugar flower

 

You don’t have to be a cake decorating expert to create a realistic flower using molds, cutters and modelling paste. Cakes with foliage are very trendy for wedding cakes at the moment, and you can even look to your own garden for inspiration.

Flowers can be as simple or as complicated as you dare! Studying a real flower is the best way to get an authentic-looking result. A good tip is - the thinner you roll the modelling paste, the more realistic your flowers will look. Once you’ve created your flower, use some lustre to give it a professional pearly sheen.

Try out edible painting

 

Turn your homemade cake into a work of art. Edible painting is all the rage right now in the professional cake decorating world and can add a beautiful edge to any cake. If you aren’t confident at painting freehand, then a great tip is to sketch out your design on tracing paper, then use a pencil to indent the icing so you’ll have a guide for the pattern you want to create.

Make it square

 

Move away from round cakes if you want to give your cakes a truly gourmet edge. While square cakes may look fancy, they are actually reasonably straightforward to make. First off, make sure you measure out the dimensions of your cake before cutting, to ensure you get it just right. Then use a large metal scraper when you apply the ganache to get straight edges, and acetate smoothes over the icing to give every edge a straight ‘finished’ look.

We hope you’ve got plenty of inspiration and ideas for adding a gourmet edge to your homemade cakes. You can find out how to master all these techniques and more with the online cake decorating tutorials available at Paul Bradford Sugarcraft School.

Thanks for reading!

5 Kitchen Updates That Will Make Festive Cooking Easier

You can feel it in the air when the festive season starts approaching. Whether it’s a cool chill or the sun starting to blaze, there is suddenly an atmosphere of preparation, of celebration, of togetherness. While many of us love hosting the events and parties that the season brings, preparing a feast for family and friends takes a lot of work. 

Streamline your food preparation and take the hassle out of hosting with our 5 tips on how you can make festive cooking easier.

1. Create Space for Food Storage

Clearing fridges and cupboards is a must-do before the festive season begins. Alternatively, if you’ve been meaning to invest in a larger cupboard or fridge, now is the time to do it. Sharing seasonal foods is a joy, but holidays are the times when shops are their busiest. You want your produce to be fresh, but shopping the day before a holiday is a guaranteed way to find yourself in the thick of frantic crowds, and stuffing produce into an overfilled fridge is a good way to ruin it. By freeing up plenty of space in your fridge, you’ll be able to complete your produce shopping a few days in advance and keep your food fresh for the big day. Creating fridge and cupboard space will also make the post-feast clean-up a much easier task – plenty of room for delicious leftovers!

2. Review Your Knives.

Struggling to cut pumpkin or carve chicken with a blunt or inappropriate knife is both time-consuming and dangerous. Having even just a couple of reliable multi-purpose knives to call on is an investment in efficiency. Use a guide to decide which style of knife will make the most valuable addition to your kitchen, and invest in some high quality makes. Consider a knife block, magnetic strip or customised draw for your knives – storing them separately protects edges from damage and makes grabbing the right one at the right time easier. Whether you’re putting together a Christmas barbecue, preparing Thanksgiving roast, or garnishing some New Years’ cocktails, having the right knives for the job will mean speedier, better results.

3. Get Organised.

This might mean organising your pots and pans so that they are easily accessible. Maybe you need to throw out unused utensils, or make it easier to find the right one by re-homing them in a purpose designed canister. It’s also a good time to review your condiments and seasonings - what was opened last year that has just been sitting around waiting for you? A spice rack with your favourite spices means that you don’t have to search through the rarely used for what you use the most. Look at getting an oil pourer attachment for your cooking oils - no more fiddling with greasy lids while you’re in the middle of browning onions! Getting organised doesn’t have to be a chore, either – with so many decorative canisters, strips, knife blocks, racks and holders on the market these days, think of it as a styling opportunity for your kitchen decor.

4. Utilise technology.

There are so many gadgets on the market today that can make food preparation easier. Tablets and smartphones are one of our top picks – you can browse all the recipes the internet has to offer with ease and store them in one place, which takes up far less room on the kitchen bench than multiple open recipe books! Make sure your meat is cooked to perfection with a Thermapen. Give your crème brûlée the perfect crust with the help of a kitchen blowtorch. Even non-electronic gadgets can help, such as garlic choppers and vegetable slicers. No matter which part of your chosen recipes you find the fussiest, there exists a gadget to help make your life easier!

5. Update Your Mindset.

Sometimes, we get so caught up in preparations that we forget we don’t have to do it alone. Hosting celebrations generally means that there are plenty of friends and relatives at your disposal – get the kids making biscuits, the cousins tossing salads and your uncle watching the barbecue. Any recipe that can be prepared ahead of time is a winner, and often guests feel best when they can bring something along to contribute. Teamwork means that you can spend more time with your loved ones than in the kitchen by yourself. Artisan bakers and specialty food stores are perfect for finding quality bread, dips, Xmas puddings, pies, cakes and sweets, and the fresher and higher quality your ingredients, the less preparation they’ll require to taste fantastic.
The most important thing to remember is that festivals and holidays are times to be around those we love. They are times to remember everything we are grateful for, and great food and drink is just the icing on the cake!

How to Eat Well and Stay Fit this Christmas Season

We all love to enjoy the festive season with friends family and great food to bring the year to a close, but many of us regret the overindulgence of the holidays and aim to make changes in the New Year. 

What if we decided to be a little more proactive in eating better during the holiday period, giving ourselves a better shot at reaching our goals for the new year!?

One of the best ways to ensure we eat healthily during the Christmas period is to lower our intake of a number of foods that we don’t really need. Sugar, salt, fat and gluten tend to be the regular ‘nasties’ found in a lot of our food that we could well do with cutting down, or cutting out altogether.

A gluten-free Christmas is one to remember!

Creating a gluten-free Christmas sounds impossible due to all of the gluten laden foods that we consume every year, but with a number of great alternatives cropping up that offer a truly exceptional taste, we think it’s worth spending a little time making it work for everyone.

Gluten tends to rear its head in many savoury dishes at Christmas time, including cakes, pastries and a number of sweet favourites that we simply can’t miss out on. So finding a number of fantastic recipes for gluten free Christmas puddings will have many people head over heels!

One of the best ways to get your favourite desserts though is to order online from some of the best local shops that offer pre-made cakes and desserts that are free from gluten, and offer a much healthier alternative than the things in the shops.

Purchase Christmas puddings and deserts online

You can buy gluten free Christmas puddings online from a number of supermarkets and stores, but the real secret to a home-made dessert is with a boutique pudding specialist. Pud For All Seasons offers gourmet puddings that you can purchase online to treat yourself whenever you need it most.

With gluten free Christmas puddings created with care and baked with love, who could resist a little cheating to order your food in time for your Xmas dinner?

Gluten free puddings are one of the best alternatives for the real thing, considering they feature a much richer ingredient list that does away with gluten in favour for specialist flour and baking products to give it a uniquely classic taste to enjoy with family this year.

Cut down on unnecessary ingredients to give yourself a boost for the New Year

Cutting down on your stodge is a great way to feel fit, and take on much less gluten and fat than previous years. Take the time to look for alternative recipes in terms of butter, salt and sugar content for all of your meals and you may find that serving up the leanest Christmas lunch may be your best ever.

Not only will you feel lighter and healthier due to the lack of unnecessary ingredients, you will also see the praise of your guests who will have made a great start to the New Year, in keeping fit, healthy and gluten free for this holiday season!

Interesting and Unique Christmas Traditions around the World

"Christmas" the word itself creates an atmosphere of warmth and happiness. More than 160 countries around the globe celebrate Christmas each year. Though the spirit of this day is more or less the same all over the world, the traditions very from country to country. Let's take a look at 5 countries having uniquely awesome Christmas traditions! 

Australia

Christmas in Australia has quite a few things that’s totally unique and different from the rest of the world. First they have Christmas in SUMMER, 'Christmas Bush' a native tree with small green leaves and cream coloured flowers and wait-for-it, kangaroos what they call the ‘six white boomers’ for reindeers!

As for traditional Christmas meal, they have cold ham and cold turkey, seafood and salads, traditional Christmas puddings, pavlovas and gingerbread in Christmas shapes.

Japan

Source: www.heitonbuckley.ie

It is a land where Merry Christmas becomes 'Meri Kurisumasu', and KFC (yes KFC) is the traditional Christmas food! We are talking about the land far at the east of Asia, we are talking about Japan. They have started celebrating Christmas only recently and they have already learnt how to do it right. 

Though it’s a not a government holiday on 25th of December and there’s not much religious value of this day, the Japanese spend the day spreading joy and love and eating lots and lots of KFC. Not so bad Japan!

Germany

Source: explosivetrafficsystem.com

The Germans celebrate Christmas pretty traditionally except for one thing. They decorate their homes with Christmas tree, lights, candles, glass ornaments which is very German by the way, read Bible and sing Christmas carols. Now the thing that’s a little different or should we say scary, is that, in Germany Father Santa comes accompanied by a scary devil-like character to warn the children to be good! 

In Germany they eat ‘Stollen’ which is a very special kind of traditional fruitcake, duck, goose, rabbit or a roast, accompanied by German delicacies such as apple and sausage stuffing, red cabbage, and potato dumplings for Christmas dinner.

Norway 

Source: www.lifeinnorway.net

Now let’s travel to a fairy-tale like Scandinavian country, where the actually believe Tim Burton’s “The Nightmare Before Christmas” is true! In Norway they hide away all brooms, men fire guns into open sky. According to their ancient belief, Christmas eve is the perfect time for witches and dark spirits to emerge from hell. They also believe a gnome like creature named Nisse will protect them and bring Christmas presents. Children leave a bowl of porridge out for him.

Julegrøt a rice porridge with an almond hidden inside, giant pork meatballs, ginger-bread these are traditional Norwegian Christmas dishes from Norway. 

The Czech Republic

Source: www.dobrarealitka.cz

This central European country has a very interesting tradition going on for Christmas. On Christmas eve, unmarried Czech women stand putting their backs at the door and throw a shoe towards it. If the shoe lands on it’s heel towards the door that means she has to be lonely for one more year, but if it lands with it’s front towards the door, that means she can kiss her parents goodbye and plan a wedding down the line! Some Czechs fast during the day till the Christmas dinner is served, that way they have hope to see a mystical ‘golden piglet’ appear on the wall, which means good luck!

The Czech traditional Christmas dinner is often consists of fish soup (made of carp), and fried carp with potato salad and home backed Christmas cookies.

In Spain, Portugal and Italy they re-create the village of Bethlehem along with the figures of Mary, baby Jesus and a ‘caganer. Now a caganer is figure of a squatting human as if it’s going to take a toilet. Ancient traditions, what to complain! And all in the good spirit of Christmas! 

Go Gluten Free: For A Healthier and Better Life

Gluten, came from the Latin word 'Glue', is a binding agent that gives elasticity to dough, helps it rise and maintains its shape. It is a protein that is found in gains like wheat, rye, barley and all their species and hybrids. When flour is mixed with water, gluten forms a sticky ross-linked network of proteins, giving elastic properties to dough and allowing bread to rise when baked. Gluten contains hundreds of proteins, which have low biological and nutritional value and high contents of prolamins, as opposed to the grains of pseudocereals (gluten free), which are rich in proteins with high biological value. Gluten is used in many types of foods, such as bread, baked products, soups, pasta, cereals, sauces, salad dressings etc.

Why to Go Gluten Free?

Before you decide to go on a full blown “gluten free diet” you should have a clear conception of why do you want to do that. Though whole wheat, does offer some health benefits, the gluten can actually be harmful. The most sever thing that can be caused by gluten is Celiac disease. And that’s not all. Here are some reasons you may want to go gluten free!

Many People have Gluten Sensitivity or Celiac Disease

Gluten is consisted of two proteins: gliadin and glutenin. People react negatively to the gliadin part. When gluten reaches the digestive tract and is exposed to the cells of the immune system, they mistakenly believe that it is coming from some sort of foreign invader, like a bacteria. Now for those people who are gluten intolerant, this causes the immune system to mount an attack against it. 

In celiac disease, the immune system attacks the gluten proteins, but it also attacks an enzyme in the cells of the digestive tract called tissue transglutaminase cause the gluten protein looks pretty much the same as your own body tissue. That means gluten exposure in celiacs causes the immune system to attack both the gluten as well as the intestinal wall itself, which leads to nutrient deficiencies, various digestive issues, anemia, fatigue, failure to thrive as well as an increased risk of many serious diseases.

Gluten is a Pro-inflammatory Agent

Inflammation is the process through which your immune system treats injuries. Whenever you get a cut or splinter and the surrounding area gets all red and tender. That means the injured area is getting healed. The proteins in wheat are gut irritants: they’re like that papercut or splinter digging into the lining of your gut, causing an inflammatory response.

Gluten Can Cause Leaky Gut Syndrome

Inflammation in the gut causes a problem called intestinal permeability. The gut has a very complex system of 'border control' that lets digested food into bloodstream while keeping everything else out. We swallow millions of random viruses, bacteria, indigestible molecules like dust, and other stuff every day, that need to go out the other end, not into our bloodstream. Inflammation in the gut messes up that system of border control. It loosens the junctions between cells in the gut wall so too much stuff can pass through. This is often described as making the gut 'leaky'. In short a Leaky gut syndrome is a condition whereby stuff is leaking from your gut into your bloodstream, stuff that shouldn’t be there.

Increased Vulnerability to Non-Celiac Autoimmune Diseases

You’ll find a bunch of studies linking it to all kinds of other autoimmune diseases if you go digging into the research on celiac disease and gluten. Wheat gluten is a major potential trigger of Type 1 Diabetes (that’s the autoimmune type, not the diet-and-lifestyle type). A study showed that feeding mice a gluten-free diet reduced the rate of Type 1 diabetes in their children. There’s also evidence that breastfeeding human children reduces the rate of type 1 diabetes, which would make sense if gluten is the problem because breastfeeding delays the introduction of gluten to the baby.

Wheat is a Top Listed Allergens

Wheat and wheat gluten is a trigger of various allergic reactions. Millions of people all over the world suffer from gluten allergies every year. For causing all these autoimmune skin diseases, gluten is one of the 8 allergens found these days. And the more concerning fact is people don’t even no they are allergic to gluten!

So does that mean you have to resist yourself from all the good tasty treats? Certainly not! Pud for All Seasons offers a range of excellent gluten free puddings to cheer you up. Here we are sharing two amazing gluten free pudding ideas for you!

Gluten-Free Vanilla Pudding

This simple yet delicious pudding comes together with just a handful of ingredients and a little stirring. Mix sugar, cornstarch, and a bit of salt, then whisk in milk and egg yolks. Then cook the whole mixture over medium heat, until thickened, then take off the heat and stir in butter and vanilla extract.

Strain it, and finally let it cool in the fridge, and you’re done! The hardest part of this recipe is probably the waiting for it period, before you can devour it. You can top this delicious pudding with sliced pears browned in a frying pan in butter and sugar, with a sprinkle of cinnamon or with a dollop of cream.

Gluten-Free Plum Pudding

The best way to finish your Christmas lunch is with a traditional Christmas pudding. What if the pudding is filled with healthy ingredients and completely gluten free. This gluten free delicacy is filled with the fruity goodness of plums and the sauce with is just makes it even more special, keeps well and is usually made well in advance of the seasonal festivities. Many families make their pudding on Stir Up Sunday, a month before Christmas.

A small percentage of the entire world population is actually gluten intolerant. But others may have negative effects by the over consumption of this protein. Cautious is the key here. To avoid all kinds of gluten related side effects you can easily skip this not-so-healthy ingredient all together!

How Did Christmas Pudding We Know and Love Originate?

Christmas pudding is one of the most famous and widely enjoyed desserts in the western world. Nowadays you can find lots of variations in Christmas puddings, you can even find healthy delicious gluten-free versions! But it has a beginning. Since it first appeared in the 15th century, it has been given many names including plum pudding, figgy pudding and colloquially ‘pud’. 

Being such an old and traditional delicacy, it has firmly established itself as one of the staples of the Christmas meal and remains one of the holiday’s strongest icons. Just like any other Christmas traditions, the plum pudding and its connection to Christmas took many years to develop.

Christmas Puddings Today

Plum pudding is usually steamed twice in a pudding cloth. After it is boiled once, the pud is kept to dry and to enhance the flavours over time. Again it needs a few hours of steaming before it is served. Pudding can be kept for many months and can be enjoyed both hot and normal temperature. At Christmas time though, pud is usually eaten with hard sauce, cream, custard, or brandy butter.

A Brief History of Christmas Pudding

The idea of the traditional Christmas pudding originated in England more than 500 years ago. Although, there are considerable variations in modern plum puddings from to those that were enjoyed at that time. You might not be aware, but Xmas puddings actually started out as a porridge made out of mutton, beef, spices, raisins, currants, prunes, and wines, quite different to the fruity pudding flavours we’ve come to adore.

However as time passed on, a pudding evolution took place. Due to the abundance of prunes, more of plums, raisins, and other dried fruit became main ingredients. Eventually, the taste of pud changed from savoury to sweet. And, the plum pudding started taking a thickened form with more flavour absorbed from stronger spirits such as beer and other alcohol. Although meat elements are not there anymore, the traditional Christmas pudding recipes include suet (raw beef or mutton fat) which would’ve been found in early recipes of that time.

King George I declared the pudding to be a Christmas delicacy after having it served at a royal Christmas feast some 200 years later after it first appeared.

Flamed Puddings?

The way in which a Christmas pudding is served also has a strong tradition, one of which is ‘flamed’ or ‘fired’. Here, the pudding is doused with flaming brandy. This adds flavour to it and gives the pud certain crispiness.

Here’s how you go about it. Heat ½ a cup of brandy in a saucepan, and light the spirit using a match. Immediately pour the flaming liquid over the pudding. As well as brandy, you can also use rum or whisky. It is important to stay safe while lighting the pud. First, use a long match to ignite the spirit. Then, be careful to pour the flaming brandy only over the pudding slowly. Just a heads up, it’s probably a good idea to avoid too much alcohol before going for this!

In Australia and New Zealand, regardless of the hot weather, plum puddings remain a popular part of a traditional Christmas feast. Because they’re so long-lasting, you can order them pre-made and get delivered and they taste amazing!