The mystery of the malva pudding

Exactly how you view this sweet delight is an entirely different issue. No two people will make it in the same way with exactly the same ingredients and the results can be vastly different.

Because of the debate around the perfect local pud, lecturer Hennie Fisher put his culinary art students from the Tukkies Consumer Science department to the test. They had to find the perfect recipe. And that's not as simple a task as it sounds. They couldn't just scratch around in their family archives, they had to find a published recipe and preferably one by an established culinary name.

What came out of this exercise was fascinating. It's one of the few desserts where both the baked substance and the sauce are hot. Koeksisters, for example, are fiery hot when dipped in the icy sauce, says chef Hennie. It's usually a case of different temperatures mixed together.

Think malva pudding and two ingredients stand out, vinegar and apricot jam. It is that mix of sweet and sour that gives this one such a distinct taste.

The name is another point of dispute as some think that it comes from malvasia, a sweet fortified wine, but no record can be found that it was ever made locally, according to Ina Paarman. She believes it is more likely that mashmallow was the thing that inspired the name of something that is also called a vinegar pudding, Jan Ellis pud or even a brown pudding.

According to food historian Anna Trapido, even the origins of the dessert are in dispute. Many claim it is a Cape creation while she believes there's a pioneer feel to the ingredients. It's not a complicated dish and one where the ingredients are easily available, she argues. It sounds like something that could easily be rustled up in a veld kitchen, for example.

Be that as it may, while most of the recipes boast similar ingredients, the results were surprisingly different both in texture and appearance. The final product seems to detail even the smallest sign of deviation, from the beating of the eggs to the levels of browning or the way it is presented.

As part of the exercise, the students had to use their Kenwood mixers and processors to make the pudding, and Marty Klinzman of Kenwood who generously sponsors the department as well as this particular competition was thrilled with the results.

If you have a personal favourite malva pudding, but you're open to a few new options, here's a selection of what the students discovered. This includes the two winning recipes as well as two interesting variations, one with pineapple and the other with maize meal which adds yet another dimension.

The winning malva pudding

The winning pudding, selected by Chanell Gleeson from Helmine Myburgh's A Taste of the Cape



Malvapoeding



Ingredients

20ml butter

250ml caster sugar

2 eggs

12.5ml apricot jam

5ml bicarb

125ml milk

5ml vinegar

250ml flour

Pinch salt





The sauce

250ml cream

'ml sugar

125g butter

125ml boiling water

5ml vanilla essence



Method

Cream the butter and sugar. Add the eggs one at a time and beat well each time. Add the apricot jam. Mix the bicarb in the milk and add the vinegar. Add the flour and salt to the butter and sugar mixture, alternating with the milk. Pour into a greased oven dish and bake for 45 minutes at 186°C.

Mix the ingredients for the sauce and bring to the boil. Pour the sauce over the pudding when it comes out the oven. This pudding is served hot with cream.


The original malva recipe

The Original Malva Recipe, which also scored high marks, was by chef extraordinaire Topsi Venter and selected by Fouche Deetlefs:



Ingredients

250ml castor sugar

2 eggs (room temperature)

15ml smooth apricot jam

315ml cake flour

5ml bicarb of soda

2ml salt

30ml butter

15ml vinegar

125ml milk

The sauce

250ml cream

125ml butter

125ml sugar

125ml water/orange juice/sherry/brandy



Method

1.Beat castor sugar and eggs until fluffy then beat in apricot jam.

2.Sift dry ingredients into a separate bowl.

3.Melt butter and add vinegar and milk, the dry sifted ingredients and milk. Mix into egg mix one at a time.

4.Pour into ovenproof casserole dish that takes about 2 litres.

5.Bake at 190°C for 45 minutes.

6.Melt all the sauce ingredients together and pour over the pudding before serving and preferably while it is still hot.


Mealie meal malva pudding

Jackie Cameron from Hartford House's Mealie Meal Malva Pudding has a lovely South African quality:



Ingredients

200g sugar

2 eggs

15ml apricot jam

75g flour

75g mealie meal

5ml bicarbonate of soda

Pinch salt

15g butter

5ml vinegar

100ml milk

The sauce

200ml cream

50g butter

150g sugar

100ml hot water

Method:

1.Beat the sugar and eggs very well until light and creamy.

2.Add apricot jam.

3.Sieve all the dry ingredients together and set aside.

4.Melt the butter and vinegar together then add to milk.

5.Alternatively add the milk mixture and the flour mixture to the egg mixture.

6.Put mixture into an oven tray (18 x 22cm) and bake at '186C for 30 minutes. Take the foil off and bake for a further 15 minutes.

7.While the pudding is baking make the sauce. Heat all the sauce ingredients in a saucepan. Continue stirring until the sugar granules are dissolved. Pour straight over the malva pudding when it comes out of the oven.



Yields about 6 portions


baked pineapple malva pudding

Carolie de Koster's Baked Pineapple flavoured Malva Pudding selected by Renate de Villiers:



Ingredients

2 eggs

100g/125ml sugar

50ml butter, melted

30ml apricot jam or marmalade

5ml white vinegar

50ml milk

150g/300ml cake flour

5m bicarbonate of soda

Fruit Sauce

150ml cream

90g/100ml butter, melted

100g/125ml sugar

200ml pineapple flavoured Tropika or pineapple juice

5ml Maizena

To serve: custard



Method

1. Prepare a 5cm-6cm deep middle-sized oven dish (24cm) with butter and preheat the oven to '186C.

2. Whisk the eggs and sugar together until thick and light yellow. Mix the melted butter with the apricot jam or marmalade, add the white vinegar and milk and mix with the egg mixture.

3. Add the flour and bicarbonate of soda and mix until a smooth batter is formed. Pour the batter into the prepared dish, spread it evenly and bake for about 20 minutes or until firm under the fingertips.

4. Meanwhile, place the sauce's ingredients in a pot and bring to a boil, while stirring continuously. Simmer for 5 minutes and set aside.

5. Remove the pudding from the oven, prick all over with a toothpick and pour half the sauce over. Let it stand for a while to let the sauce absorb and then gently pour the rest of the sauce over. Let it stand a few minutes until the sauce has been absorbed and serve with custard. Divine!

Serves 6 to 8 portions.

• This article was originally published on page 7 of The Pretoria News on October 10, 2009

Source : http://www.iol.co.za