I have spent some happy time today looking through the proofs of Jennifer Aldridge’s Archers’ Country Kitchen – a book of recipes that David & Charles is publishing in the summer. Author Angela Piper has played Jennifer in the BBC Radio 4 series for more than 45 years, and this cookery book should tick all the boxes for an Archers fan. There are recipes from Archers characters old and new, from Brian’s Proudly Potted Trout to Eddie Grundy’s Saucy Pickle, and including dear Nigel’s Nanny’s Nursery Pudding. Let’s hope that even those furious fans who have stopped listening (following Nigel’s demise), will still appreciate the recipes in the book, which really does bring a little bit of Ambridge to life.
So why not turn back the clock a few years and maybe shed a tear or two….
Nigel’s Nanny’s Nursery Pudding
The lovable Nigel Pargetter was cared for in those innocent formative years by a doting nanny. If Nigel was good, it was syrupy pud – with even a spoonful for his precious teddy bear, Tiddles.
SERVES 6
115g (4oz) unsalted butter
115g (4oz) caster sugar
grated zest and juice of 1 orange
2 eggs, beaten
175g (6oz) self-raising flour, sifted
6 tbsp (90ml) golden syrup
Preheat the oven to 160°C/325°F/Gas 3. In a mixing bowl cream the butter and sugar together until pale and fluffy. Beat in the orange zest and juice, and then beat in the eggs a little at a time. Fold in the flour. Spoon the syrup into a greased 1.2 litre (2 pint/32 fl oz) pudding basin and then spoon in the sponge mixture. Cover the basin with pleated greaseproof paper or foil and place in a roasting tin three-quarters filled with water. Bake for 1½ hours, until risen and firm, topping up the water in the roasting tin if necessary. Turn out and serve with a jug of warmed golden syrup mixed with fresh orange juice.