If you’ve ever seen the Great British Bake Off then you know that Britons love desserts. Who could hardly blame us when we have an endless amount of delicious puddings?
Yes, British food may have garnered quite a bad reputation among tourists but as a single bite of one of the desserts below will put an end to this myth.
Table of Contents
1. Crumble
Crumbles are delectable. Traditionally, this pudding includes a crumble made of plain flour, caster sugar, and soft butter and apples for the interior. However, you can add other fillings such as rhubarb, berries and pears.
This dessert was popularised during the Second World War as it was a cheap and simple alternative to hearty pies due to the rationing rules in place.
It’s still quite popular nowadays as it’s versatile and quite easy to make. I even remember making a dark cherry crumble in my food tech class at secondary school it was absolutely delicious. If 12 year old me can do it, so can you. Here’s a great recipe.
2. Treacle Tart
Treacle tart is another dessert loved by Harry Potter and it’s easy to see why. Treacle, a type of golden syrup, is the main star of this pudding. Other ingredients include shortcrust pastry, breadcrumbs and lemon juice or zest. In some modern recipes, breadcrumbs replace the almonds. You can eat treacle tart hot or cold and you can also eat it with custard or cream.
If you’re interested in cooking this pudding at home, here’s a recipe you can follow.
3. Battenberg Cake
You may be wondering what the name of a German town is doing on a list of great British desserts. Well, this pudding was supposedly named after the German town in celebration of Prince Louis of Battenberg’s and Princess Victoria’s marriage.
Battenberg cake is a rectangular, light sponge cake covered in jam and then wrapped in marzipan. When cut, traditional Battenberg cake has a two-by-two checkered pattern of pink and yellow. This dessert is perfect as part of an afternoon tea. You can buy these at supermarkets all over the UK, but you can also make them at home.
4. Banoffie Pie
The last half of the word Banoffee may have coffee addicts thinking about lattes and cappuccinos but this pie is, in fact, a combination of bananas, toffee and cream served on top of a golden biscuit base.
This delightfully rich dessert is quite young as it was claimed to be made by Nigel Mackenzie and Ian Dowding in 1971 after they made changes to an American recipe called “Blum’s Coffee Toffee Pie”. Here’s a recipe for this dessert if you feel like making it.
5. Eton Mess
This dessert was thought to have been created at Eton College, one of the UK’s most famous boarding schools.
Although the name and sometimes the appearance of Eton Mess may seem unattractive, this mixture of strawberries, broken meringue and whipped double cream is far from a disaster. It’s the ideal summer dessert but can be enjoyed all year round. Here’s how you can make it.
6. Scones
British scones are less sweet and buttery than the American ones you get at cafés. Traditional scones eaten during an afternoon tea in the UK are served with clotted cream and jam, but you can eat scones with butter and even whipped cream. You can also buy them at local supermarkets such as Asda.
I tried making them for a potluck while I was living in Spain, but it was quite difficult to do as I couldn’t find some necessary items in Spanish supermarkets. You’ll find a list of its ingredients as well as instructions on how to make it here.
7. Sticky Toffee Pudding
This classic British dessert consists of an extremely moist sponge cake doused in toffee sauce and can be served with custard or vanilla ice cream.
Memories of eating this pudding will have your mouth watering for days; it’s the quintessential dessert for those with a sweet tooth. You can learn how to make it here.
8. Trifle
Trifle is a chilled dessert that is often eaten at Christmas but can be enjoyed all-year-round. It’s made of several layers:
- a sponge base, which can be soaked in an alcoholic beverage or a fruit puree or juice;
- fruits, which can be emerged in jelly;
- custard;
- whipped cream.
You can often buy small pots of trifle at British supermarkets like Asda, Aldi, Sainsbury’s and Tesco. However, you can make the dessert at home as well. Here’s one recipe.
9. Victoria sponge cake
This dessert, named after Queen Victoria, is made by sandwiching raspberry jam and whipped double cream or vanilla cream between two pieces of sponge cake. It’s usually decorated with caster sugar, not icing sugar.
Here’s a recipe for this dessert if you feel up to baking it.
10. Jam Roly-Poly
This British pudding, which first made its appearance in the 19th century, is an all-time favourite. I remember eating it custard after a Sunday Roast dinner.
It’s made of a suet pudding, which is covered with jam and then rolled up like a Swiss Roll. After this, it’s baked or steam. In the past, this dessert was known as shirt-sleeve pudding, dead man’s arm and dead man’s leg, as it used to be served in an old shirt-sleeve. If you feel like making it at home, click here.
11. Knickerbocker Glory
Harry Potter fans may have heard of this dish as it was one of the young wizard’s favourite desserts. This sundae-like pudding, served in a long conical glass and eaten with a classic long dessert spoon, is any child’s dream.
The main ingredients are normally ice cream, meringue, fruit and cream, but a Knickerbocker Glory can contain any mixture of ingredients. It can also have various toppings. You can follow this recipe to make the dessert.
12. Spotted Dick
Spotted dick is a suet pudding covered in raisins, which look like spots. However, you can replace suet with other fats or eggs to make something a sponge pudding or cake when making this dessert. To top it off, spotted dick is often served with custard. You can find out how to make it here.
13. Bread and Butter Pudding
Haven’t got such a sweet tooth? Bread and Butter Pudding may be the perfect British dessert for you. The classic version may taste like a variation of French toast as the pudding is made by covering layers of buttered bread slices with raisins, currants or sultanas and an egg custard mixture.
Nowadays, however, there are many versions of the pudding with different tastes. You can try to make it using this traditional recipe.
14. Bakewell Tart
A Bakewell tart consists of a shortcrust pastry shell filled with layers of jam, frangipane, then decorated with flaked almonds. It’s similar to a Bakewell Pudding, which is closely associated with the town of Bakewell located in Derbyshire.
Sometimes the terms Bakewell tart and Bakewell pudding are used interchangeably. If you’re interested in making it then you can follow this recipe.
15. Christmas Pudding
As you will have guessed, Christmas pudding is normally served during Christmas dinner. It was first created in England during the medieval era period. The pudding is traditionally made of 13 ingredients which represent Jesus and his 12 apostles.
It’s mainly made of eggs, suet, alcohol and many dried fruits such as raisins. After the Christmas pudding is baked it’s often aged for at least a month and sometimes even a year.
Its high alcohol content makes this possible by preventing it from spoiling. If you feel up to the challenge of making this dessert, click here.
