Nadiya's Queen of Puddings

Thursday 7 December at 4:59pm

Nadiya Hussain's back with an impressive pudding that's perfect for everyone to share this Christmas.

The delicious wintry dish has so many layers to delve through – creamy custard, tangy jam and snowy meringue mountain peaks.

Serves 6-8

Ingredients

For the custard layer:

25g unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing 600ml whole milk1 tsp vanilla extract3 large egg yolks (save the whites for the meringue)50g caster sugar100g fresh white breadcrumbs

For the jam layer:

6 tbsp smooth strawberry jam

For the meringue layer:

3 egg whites 175g caster sugar

Method

Preheat the oven to 150c fan/gas mark 3. Grease a 1.4 litre ovenproof dish.
Find a roasting tray large enough for the dish to fit in and set aside.
Put the butter, milk and vanilla in a medium saucepan on a medium heat and bring the mixture to a gentle simmer.
Whisk the egg yolks and sugar in a bowl until pale and light.
Now add the hot milk to the egg mixture, making sure you stir it all the time.
Sprinkle the breadcrumbs over the base of the greased dish. Pour the milk and egg mixture over the top.
Sit the dish inside the roasting tray and pour boiling water into the roasting tray until the water is half way up the outside of the dish.
Put the tray into the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes.
When baked, take the tray out of the oven and remove the dish. Lower the oven temperature to 130c fan/gas mark 2.
Warm the jam in a small pan or in the microwave, just enough to loosen.
For the meringue, add the egg whites to a bowl and whisk until the mixture comes to soft peaks. Then add the sugar 1 tablespoon at a time and continue whisking. The meringue will be ready when there are stiff peaks and the mixture is glossy.
Spoon the meringue mixture into a piping bag.
Pour the jam all over the baked custard and gently spread into a thin, even layer.
Pipe large peaks of meringue on top of the jam or alternatively use a spoon to dollop blobs of the meringue over the top, try and bring the mixture into nice peaks if you can.
Bake the pudding in the oven for 25-30 minutes.
Serve immediately.