Lemon Surprise Pudding
Lemon Surprise Pudding is a classic British dessert that delivers a delightful light, fluffy sponge on top that transforms into a rich, tangy lemon sauce at the bottom when baked. This traditional Yorkshire favorite relies on a simple batter where lemon juice and zest are folded in, creating a self-saucing effect as the pudding cooks.
Servings 8 -10
Calories 172kcal
Ingredients
Pudding
- 100 grams / 3.5 ounces butter room temperature
- 200 grams / 1 cup superfine/caster sugar
- 165 grams / 3 large eggs room temperature and separated
- 50 grams / ⅓ cup plain flour sifted
- 10 grams / 2 tablespoons lemon zest finely grated
- 76 grams / ⅓ cup lemon juice
- 398 grams / 1 ⅔ cups milk
To serve
- Confectioner’s/icing sugar
- Whipped cream or creme fraiche
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180C/350F and butter the base of a baking dish.
- Toss the butter and sugar into a bowl and whip until pale and fluffy, approximately 3 minutes.
- Add the egg yolks and whip until smooth.
- Toss in the flour, lemon zest, juice and milk and whisk until it is a light batter, it’s fine if there’s a few small lumps.
- Add the egg whites into a separate bowl and whip until stiff, approximately 8 minutes.
- Spoon the whipped egg whites into the egg yolk mixture and fold slowly to combine.
- Pour into the buttered baking dish place the baking dish into a second larger dish.
- Fill with boiling water and place into the oven. Bake until golden on top, approximately 30 minutes.
- Remove and spoon into serving bowls.
- Top with a spoonful of whipped cream or creme fraiche and dig in.
- Enjoy!
Notes
- Plain flour: The plain flour gives our the pudding it's signature texture, helping to thicken the sponge topping and create a nice thick sauce underneath. As so minimal is required, you could make this gluten free by adding cornflour to the batter to replace the flour.
- Lemon: Verna lemons were most easy to source for this recipe, but honestly, any unwaxed lemon you have on hand works. You will want the skin to be as blemish free as possible for the zest and fresh juice is better than store-bought as it provides the best flavor and acidity.
- Baking dish: The baking dish used here is 24.5x17 cm / 9.5x6.5 inches which is small to medium sized.
- It can be made ahead, but with caution: This is best served the day it’s made. You could bake, allow to cool and cover fully to refrigerate. Reheat in a warm oven of 100C/210F for approximately 10 minutes. This may cause the sauce to thicken though.
Nutrition
Calories: 172kcal