Queen of Puddings - Serves 4

Another simple but delicious pudding using readily available ingredients and topped off with a crown of soft meringue.

Method

Pre-heat the oven to Gas 4, 180 centigrade. Place the milk in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Remove from the heat and add the breadcrumbs, butter, lemon zest and 25g of the sugar. Mix well to ensure evenly mixed and set aside for 20 minutes.

Separate the eggs and beat the yolks. Add them to the cooled milk and breadcrumb mixture and combine well. Pour the mixture into a 1 litre pie dish, spread it out and baken in the oven for 30 - 35 minutes until set.

Melt the rasperry jam gently in a small saucepan and spread over the top of the cooked pudding.

In a large bowl whisk the egg whites to a stiff peak consistency and then add the remaining 25g of caster sugar and whisk in well. Spread the meringue mixture over the top of the pudding and use a palette knife or spatular to form peaks over the surface. Finally sprinkle with a little more caster sugar and bake in the oven for a further 10 - 15 minutes until golden.