Name: Saffron and cardamom panettone pudding
Ingredients: 600ml whole milk; ⅛ tsp saffron strands; 90g unsalted butter; 5 cardamom pods, bashed open in a pestle and mortar and ground for a ¼ tsp; 75g caster sugar; 6 eggs, 4 whole + 2 egg yolks; 450ml double cream; ½ tsp orange zest; 900g panettone, cut in 5-7cm chunky pieces; 1 tsp icing sugar to serve; flaked sea salt

Dessert Christmas

Serves 6-8

The test kitchen went wild for this recipe, an Italian twist on a classic bread and butter pudding, rich with cardamom and saffron scented custard and studded with candied fruit. If you are a fan of marzipan, try lowering the sugar to 50g and scatter in 100g of grated marzipan just before you pour in the custard. For that extra sweet symphony of festive flavour.

Ingredients

600ml	whole milk
⅛ tsp	saffron strands
90g	unsalted butter
5	cardamom pods, bashed open in a pestle and mortar and ground for a ¼ tsp
75g	caster sugar
6	eggs, 4 whole + 2 egg yolks
450ml	double cream
½ tsp	orange zest
900g	panettone, cut in 5-7cm chunky pieces
1 tsp	icing sugar to serve
	flaked sea salt

Method

Preheat the oven to 180C.
Warm the milk and saffron gently in a medium pan on low heat. Remove from the heat as soon as it starts steaming and set aside to steep for 10 minutes.
Add the butter into a 32cm x 24cm high sided baking dish and place into the oven for 5 minutes or until melted.
Put the cardamom and sugar into a large heatproof bowl and whisk in the eggs and yolks, followed by the milk, 300ml of the cream, orange zest and ¼ teaspoon of salt.
Toss the panettone through the melted butter in the baking dish and then carefully pour over the custard making sure everything gets an even soaking.
After 5 minutes, gently turn over any pieces that look dry so that the custard gets distributed evenly and then place in the oven and bake for 35 minutes until just set and golden brown on top.
Let it sit for 10 minutes, scatter over a little flaked sea salt and using a fine sieve, dust over some icing sugar. Serve with the remaining 150ml cream on the side for pouring.