The pudding wizard

In December 2009 Aussie TV show A Current Affair went in search of the best Christmas pudding offered in Australia. Eight independent judges picked a product sold under the Cole’s brand for a cent-pinching A$5.99 as their ‘best value’ seasonal pud.

Behind the culinary design of that pudding was a bright young Kiwi food technologist, Emma Shannon, who works for the Auckland-based Hansells Food Group, which used to be the Old Fashioned Foods (Aunt Betty’s brand of steamed puddings and desserts). 

Old Fashions Foods was set up in 1996 and within two years had broken into the United Kingdom and Australian markets with its Kiwi-designed steamed and baked puddings.

When Emma first started with the company, after finishing her culinary education at Massey University with a Bachelor of Technology majoring in food technology, she says formulations were a lot easier because artificial ingredients were commonplace.

Back to natural ingredients

Grandmothers all over the country should be rejoicing. Natural ingredients are replacing processed ones in commercial pudding recipes.

And the trend is not driven from ‘green’-conscious New Zealand or even food regulations, but from export consumer markets such as the United Kingdom.

 “It is driven by clients who are stressing recipes with all natural products,” says Emma.

And the challenge is to find natural alternatives without blowing out budgets. 

“Natural products just don’t have the same shelf life, and some of our products have a shelf life of two years.”

There was the case of making a strawberry sauce for a UK client, for instance. 

“Keeping the natural ‘red’ colour without artificial additives is a challenge in different food pH [acid/alkaline] environments, and heating.”

The right fats

Another challenge for modern pudding designers is the demand for less fat and less sugar.

“We are working on a redesign of our Aunt Betty’s Delite puddings to get those to taste as good with five percent less fat and with natural ingredients – the same as our Aunt Betty’s range which is all natural.”

Getting the right ‘mouth feel’ between fat and sugar is a tricky balance at the best of times, says Emma.

“If you take a lot of fat out you often end up putting in slightly more sugar. It’s very difficult lowering fat content as it is a very good flavour carrier.”

The trend is to also use non-hydrogenated fats. While hydrogenated oil is far more shelf-stable and has a higher melting point (so is often used in frying and pastries) the process also converts healthy fats in the oil into a new type of fatty acid, known as a trans fat. Research suggests the result could be worse than the original saturated fat if consumed in excess.

“We now use a lot of our own Alfa One Rice Bran Oil Spread in our pudding recipes rather than hydrogenated fats.”  

The oil is imported from Thailand and processed into spread by the Hansells Food Group in New Zealand.

Texture changes

Christmas puddings are one of the exceptions when it comes to the influence of the United Kingdom on commercial food trends down under. Looking into the typical shopping cart it is incredible how many products were invented or originated in the US: breakfast cereals, frozen foods, soft drinks, canned goods, cheesecake, doughnuts, bagels, potato chips, tomato sauce, ice cream cones, ice blocks, avocados, and densely flavoured cookies to name just a few. Even ubiquitous menu favourites, such as Caesar salad and eggs Benedict, are US in origin.

However, when it comes to puddings, the United Kingdom still rules the Commonwealth – except Canada where, as in the United States, the Christmas pudding is not a common sight on supermarket shelves.

“Although there is a big difference in texture between Christmas puddings in New Zealand and Australia and those consumed in the UK,” says Emma. 

“Our puddings are more cakey and spongy in texture. The UK likes their pudding denser and moister.” 

Emma has been working on new puddings for the Australian market that we will see on our shelves this Christmas where the texture is more akin to pudding consumed in the UK. 

“Not quite so dense,” she adds, “that would be too much of a jump, but definitely moving in that direction.”

Emma confesses that she thought her first taste of a British pud was “yuk”.

“We were so used to working with a spongy light texture. They wanted a pudding that was wet and glossy and covered with syrup when turned upside down. Once we started working with them, I now prefer that texture. It will be interesting to see how far we go with the denser texture over the next few years.”
 
A traditional snort for Christmas 

Not surprisingly, Emma is a little guarded when discussing new flavour trends and combinations that we can expect to see from the test kitchens of the Hansells Food Group.

A basic rule of thumb, she says, is to take a tried and proven flavour the market is familiar with and give it a twist.

“If it too different, it won’t sell. Customers find it too scary.”

A new recipe that  Emma’s teammates are working on for Christmas release is a popular pudding in the Aunt Betty’s range that is “richer and more indulgent”, she says, with the addition of butter and whiskey. 

“Very traditional,” she says with a big smile.

Winter 2010 - by Alan Titchall

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