Baked Orange Pudding

Set the oven to 180 degrees C / 350 degrees F / gas 4. Rub the butter into the flour. Stir in 30 ml (2 Tbsp) of the caster sugar. Sprinkle in 45 - 60 ml (3 - 4 Tbsp) cold water. Mix lightly to bind the ingredients into a sweet short pastry. Press the pastry together. Roll the pastry out. Use the pastry to line a 20 cm (8 inch) round flan dish. Prick the base all over with a fork. Crumble the cake into the pastry case. Make sure that the cake is broken up evenly. Sprinkle the orange juice over the crumbs. In a separate clean bowl whisk the orange rind, the remaining caster sugar and the eggs together. Gradually whisk in the milk. Pour this egg and milk mixture over the crumbs. Add this mixture slowly to allow time for each addition to be absorbed by the crumbs. This must be done carefully to prevent it overflowing around the sides of the pastry case. Bake for about 1 hour 15 minutes, or until the filling is set, risen and golden brown. Leave the pudding to cool for 10 minutes before serving. Or, allow the pudding to cool completely and serve cold. Serve custard or a jam sauce with the hot pudding. If the pudding is served cold, flavour some whipped cream with a little sweet orange liqueur to complement the pudding. If the pudding is served cold, it is best served at room temperature. Do not served chilled because the texture can become rather dense. JAM SAUCE 225 g (8 oz) good quality marmalade or fruit jam 30 - 45 ml (2 - 3 Tbsp) water Heat jam with water. White wine or dry sherry may be used instead of the water. Stir until the marmalade or jam has melted and has combined well with the liquid. Notes: Good quality plain cake is important for this recipe. Either a whisked sponge or a cake based on a creamed mixture. Victoria sandwich or Madeira would be ideal. Any cake that is strongly flavoured is unsuitable. It is better to use a flan dish than a pie dish. Grandmother used to use a pie dish in the original recipe. A flan dish is better because it ensures that the crust cooks well. Since the pudding requires lengthy cooking, there is no need to bake the pastry case separately before filling it. To make a lighter pudding, the pastry case may be dispensed with. The filling can be cooked on its own in a suitable dish. If the pastry case is dispensed with, the cooking time should be reduced by 10 - 15 minutes.