British · Authentic-ish British
Bread and Butter Pudding
268 kcal a serving, against 454 for the traditional version. That is 186 kcal off, or 41%, with 10.7g of protein. Serves 6. 1 hour 10 minutes.
What the traditional version is
The classic is sliced white bread, buttered as if you're making sandwiches for a long train journey.
What changed, and what each change costs
Double cream and whole milk swapped for skimmed milk
Cream is what gives the custard its luscious, thick set.
What it costs you. The pudding is much lighter on the spoon and sets with a bit of grain where the cream would have been silky. You'll miss the luxury if you're a custard devotee. But you'll still get a good wobble, and the key flavours hold up.
Butter swapped for a thin scrape of fine-cut orange marmalade
The classic layer of butter goes straight from bread to waistband. Marmalade gives the top a shine and a hint of bitterness, which isn't a perfect replacement but stops the crust being bland.
What it costs you. You lose all the buttery perfume and the crisp, browned edges that make the original so satisfying. On the bright side, you won't look at the empty butter dish with guilt. The marmalade is the second-best topping, and that's the honest truth.
Drop the extra egg yolks; use whole eggs only
Egg yolks thicken custard and add depth, but they're carrying a fair share of the fat. Using just whole eggs drops the richness, but the custard still sets. No one at the table will accuse this pudding of being over-indulgent.
What it costs you. The set is firmer, and you won't get the same gelato-smooth texture. You also lose a little colour, but if anyone's grading the pudding on yellowness, you've got bigger problems.
Cut the sugar by a third and add a little orange zest
Less sugar means it's less cloying, and the orange zest bumps up the illusion of sweetness. The classic is sweeter than it needs to be, and the zest makes the lighter custard taste fresher.
What it costs you. It's not a pudding for those chasing a sugar rush, but the marmalade on top pulls some of the weight. If you want a sugar bomb, there's always trifle.
The numbers
| Per serving | Traditional | Lightened |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 454 | 268 |
| Protein | 10.3g | 10.7g |
| Fat | 27.5g | 6.4g |
| Saturated fat | 15.6g | 2.6g |
| Carbohydrate | 42.7g | 42.5g |
| Protein per 100 kcal | 2.3g | 4g |
Every figure is computed from the recipe's own weighed ingredient list against public food composition databases. The appendix in Authentic-ish British prints the exact database row used for each ingredient, so any number here can be checked.
Allergens. eggs, gluten, milk, sulphites.
The method is in the book
Anyone who says you can't taste the difference is either a liar or hasn't had the real thing. The marmalade trick is clever, but it isn't butter, it's marmalade. The custard sets, but it doesn't sing like it does with cream and yolks. Still, it's comforting, warm, and has the right flavour. It's what you want on a rainy night if you need a pudding and can't face the old-school version. You get a wobbly, orangey, not-too-sweet dessert that'll scratch the itch for nostalgia without leaving you in a food coma. If you're after the thick, silky, heart-stopper of a pudding from your nan's house, you'll notice what's missing.
The quantities and the method for this dish are in Authentic-ish British, along with 57 more. It is not out yet. The swap kit is free in the meantime.