Seasoned puddings (Yorkshire puddings improved)

Should be preceded with "CP" (cooking post). Right, gather round boys and girls, this is something I've been meaning to elaborate on for ages. Bland and boring yorkshire puddings may taste great with roast beef but you rarely have them and they seem a bit ordinary at any other time?

No Sir.

We don't know whether it was a recipe passed to her in the mists of time, but Joyce Haywood aka my Grandmother taught us this one called Seasoned Puddings.

Serves 4 as an accompaniment to roast pork.

Ingredients

• One small onion
• Normal batter mix for making Yorkshire puddings for 4 people
• 2 heaped teaspoons of dried sage

Actions

• Take the onion and dice it very finely. Put it in a small amount of water in a saucepan, bring to the boil then simmer for 2 to 3 minutes to soften.
• While that is warming and softening, make up a batter mix in the normal manner and beat as usual until you hear it clop, clop, clop (the noise of it being the right consistency rather than the mixture sprouting cloven hooves).
• Drain the onions into a sieve and allow to cool for a few minutes.
• Add the dried sage to the mixture and stir thoroughly.
• Add the onions to the mixture and stir thoroughly.
• Get a Yorkshire pudding tin (the ones with four holes of about 3-4 inches each across rather than the ones with a dozen, tiny holes per tin) and put ordinary vegetable oil, or lard if you are old school, into each part so that there is the thinnest covering all over - you need full covering or it sticks but any more and it all goes horribly wrong. Put this into the oven at 400 degrees fahrenheit, 200 degrees celsius (180 degrees for a fan oven) or gas mark 6.
• Once the oven is fully up to temperature, remove the tin from the oven. The oil ought to be almost smoking.
• Spoon the mixture in carefully but fairly quickly and return the tin to the oven for 25 minutes (but do check through the window).

The puddings will be done but don't be dismayed by the lack of rising - seasoned puddings don't rise as much as a traditional Yorkshire. Serve immediately.

You should also find that whether they are filled with gravy or served as they are, there should be less fighting over the crackling and the stuffing.