Chocolate Brownie Christmas Pudding Kit

We were pleased to see a range of different ideas in the Christmas section at Tesco... this #glutenfree Chocolate Brownie Christmas Pudding Kit caught our eye (particularly as it was on offer at £2.50!)

Checking out what was needed to use the kit, it was good to see that it wasn't a huge list of non-standard things.  So, we picked out the pyrex bowl, found the greaseproof paper and weighed out the butter (uses 100g, melted or use dairy free spread) ... before adding it to a large, beaten egg and 20ml water.

These were mixed lightly (we used a fork) and then added to the 'dry' ingredients and thoroughly mixed.

Having greased and lined the 0.5l pyrex pudding bowl, we added the mix and levelled the top.



The brownie pudding was then microwaved... the instructions mention 800W strength but the microwave we were using was only 700W so we lengthened the cooking time.

Once done, the pudding looked (and smelt) pretty good!

Whilst the pudding was being cooked, we made up the icing by adding 2 tsp (10ml) water to the icing sugar and mixed it well (we used a mug for this).

The pudding was allowed to cool in the bowl for about 20 minutes before it was turned out onto a plate and the greaseproof paper was removed (easily).

Next, we poured the icing over the top...

 .... and then added the holly sprinkles (a generous portion!) before we dived in to try.

It was a huge success and definitely something we all enjoyed (though our portions served 6 from the kit, not the 8 the packaging mentions)

Patisserie Valerie

We heard Patisserie Valerie were selling gluten free goods... so next time we were near a store we bought a few goodies to try:- a ginger biscuit, chocolate brownie and a chocolate chip muffin. These all arrive in store pre-packed from a dedicated bakery and sell at £2.10 to take away.  Also spotted on sale was a macaroon, displayed unwrapped, and with no gluten containing ingredients we gave this a go (but J refused).

The Ginger biscuit was crisp but not too hard and had a lovely gingery flavour.  

J wolfed down the chocolate brownie in no time... so I didn't get chance for a taste.  He said it was "a brownie" so suppose that's good!!


I managed to get a small morcel of the Choc Chip Muffin.... it was nice and moist and, despite this pic, was not crumbly.

I also tried a macaroon... with a lovely moist almondy centre and a crisp outer.  It's no pre-wrapped and is not labelled as gluten free but has no gluten containing ingredients.  Our server got a fresh biscuit out for me rather than taking one from the display (which is open and thus could be a cross contamination risk).

We will definitely return to try more of the gluten free offerings and were pleased to hear there's also a "celebration cake" that can be ordered.  So perhaps this year I won't have to make my own gluten free birthday cake?!

Choc Chip Muffin label

Chocolate Brownies

Whilst searching online I came across this recipe which, amazingly, we had all bar one of the ingredients to make.

We substituted walnuts for the pecans in the original recipe so what we had was:-

100g Dark chocolate
100g Unsalted butter (softened)
150g dark soft brown sugar
150g caster sugar
2 eggs (we used large ones)
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
150g ground almonds
50g marshmallows (we used large ones, chopped into 4s)
100g walnut pieces (optional)

The chocolate and butter were melted in a stainless steel mixing bowl over a pan of boiling water.  

Having been mixed and removed from the heat, the sugars were added.  Then the eggs were beaten in one at a time.  By this time, it was quite thick and had the salt and vanilla mixed through before we folded in the almonds.

Finally the walnuts and then the marshmallow pieces were stirred through the mix.

Having prepared the baking tin by lining it with foil and oiling it carefully, the mix was poured into the tin. 

It was time to bake! So the tin was placed in a pre-heated fan oven at 170ºC for 20 minutes, then we tested the centre with a skewer and returned it for another five minutes. 

After this time, it was smelling delicious and we had to be very disciplined to leave the tray to cool completely on a cooling rack.

Finally, it was cool enough to turn out of the tin, carefully remove the foil and cut into pieces.  We halved the traybake, cut one half into 9 and the other into 16.  Tasting by Sous Chef J confirmed it was "very good indeed".

 Being mindful of the need for easy Gluten Free day out treats, we hastily bagged some up to freeze in individual portions....

Well worth the effort although cannot bear to think of the calorific value. Definitely an "eat me as a treat"