Serves 6

To measure out the syrup accurately, dip your measuring spoon into hot water before dunking into the syrup. This way, the syrup will glide off into the pudding basin, without the need to scrape it off or get sticky fingers.

200g quince (trimmed weight), peeled and cored
240g golden caster sugar
2 balls of stem ginger in syrup, drained and finely diced
3-4 tbsp golden syrup
1 tbsp ground almonds
140g softened butter, plus extra for greasing
140g self-raising flour
1 tbsp ground ginger
Grated zest of 1 orange
3 eggs
Splash of milk
Custard or double cream, to serve

1 Lightly butter a 1.2-litre pudding basin. Chop the quince into bite-size pieces. Dissolve 100g of the sugar in 300ml water in a small pan over a low heat. Bring to the boil and cook for 5 minutes, before adding the quince. Return to the boil and simmer for 15 minutes, or until a cutlery knife slides easily into the quince.

2 Drain the quince through a sieve and discard the poaching syrup. Mix the quince and stem ginger together in a bowl. Spoon the golden syrup into the basin and sprinkle with the ground almonds. Arrange the quince and stem ginger on top, pressing them gently into the syrup.

3 Put all of the remaining ingredients for the sponge mixture, including the rest of the sugar, in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric hand whisk until it is of dropping consistency, adding a splash of milk if stiff. Spoon the mixture on top of the quince and level the top.

4 Lay a large sheet of greaseproof paper on top of a piece of foil the same size. Grease the paper with butter, make a pleat in the middle of both and lay them, paper side down, over the basin. Tie tightly with string, trim off any excess paper and scrunch the foil down to keep it watertight.

5 Steam for 1½ hours, keeping an eye on the water level every 30 minutes or so, and topping it up if needed. To check the pudding is ready, unwrap and insert a skewer into the sponge. The skewer should come out completely clean. Turn the pudding out on to a plate and serve with custard or double cream.

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