8
Submitted by Zurie
"This ancient, delicious dessert got its name this way: in the time of party-line phones (which still exist in some farming areas) this recipe was apparently passed on from cook to cook by phone, and didn't have a proper name. So it became "Telephone Pudding". The recipe is not in our best-known older cookbooks such as "Cook and Enjoy It" (the cooking bible of many young brides!!), and neither could I find it in my considerable stack of old cookbooks, so it's almost lost now!! I was given the recipe by my husband's aunt, who is now 86. Lovely, sinful winter dessert!! Funny method -- but just try it! (It's getting rather tedious to correct the wrong assumptions: Jan 25, 2009: the review comment is wrong. If you want the lovely Roly Poly pudding recipe, it's either recipe #235004 or recipe #253994. On Feb 6, 2009: Dear reviewer, maybe it tastes vaguely like Malva Pudding, but here is the genuine Malva pudding: recipe #118545)."
photo by Ivansocal 
- Ready In:
- 1hr
- Ingredients:
- 12
- Serves:
-
4-6
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ingredients
-
Batter
- 1 1 cup superfine sugar or 1 cup caster sugar
- 4 ounces butter
- 2 tablespoons apricot jam, smooth
- 1 large egg, largest size, beaten lightly
- 1 teaspoon baking soda or 5 ml bicarbonate of soda
- 1 cup milk
- 1 1⁄2 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon ginger
- 1 teaspoon salt
-
Syrup
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 cups water, boiling
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
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directions
- Heat oven to 350 deg F/180 deg Celsius For convection/fan ovens the heat can be a little lower.
- Cream butter and sugar well. (Use castor sugar/superfine sugar to make it easier).
- Add the jam and lightly beaten egg to the creamed mixture.
- Mix the flour, ginger and salt together.
- Mix the baking soda/bicarbonate of soda* into the cup of milk in a roomy bowl.
- Whisk the creamed mixture alternately with the dry ingredients into the milk, to form a smooth batter.
- To make the syrup, boil the water (using your electric kettle is fastest, then measure into a small pot). Add the sugar, and stir until sugar melts. Add vanilla.
- Pour this syrup into an oven dish -- not shallow! Then pour the pudding batter into the boiling syrup.
- Bake pudding for about 30 - 45 mins until brown on top and baked through. (Sorry, aunt's recipe is a bit vague on this point).
- * Baking soda is better known as bicarbonate of soda in South Africa.
Questions & Replies
-
Being a Yank, this is new to me, but intriguing. Do you serve it with jam? Butter and jam? Have you ever used a different jam?
Edwinmcgee
-
I agree this is not roly poly or malva pud, but in my original recipe I remember adding vinegar. Have you seen a telephone pudding recipe with vinegar? I lost my old recipe and was so glad to find this.
Marion G.
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Reviews
-
to be honest I have never heard of this recipe before, but I can totally see why people rave about it. It comes out really moist and almost reminds me of cornbread, but the syrup just takes it another level. once baked the syrup takes on the taste of the apricot jam. yum!
Ivansocal
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This recipe is close to the one I grew up with, except that my aunt used marmelade and not apricot jam, she also used dry ginger and marmelade in the syrup. We served it with runny custard
walda
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Thanks Zurie, this recipe, out of many that I have tried over the years, comes closest to my grandmother's one. You have not only made my day, but that of my sister as well! Brings back so many childhood memories :)As for the previous review of this recipe, this is nowhere near a Roly Poly dessert.
Chef Africa
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Wonderful recipe! I've made it a few times, followed the directions and it's definitely not too dry. This is not the roly poly dessert that I know, though. The roly poly pudding my mom makes uses jam but no ginger, and it's lighter in colour. This is more dark.Definitely worth making!
BethBud
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There's an error in this recipe - the proportions of water and sugar for the syrup are wrong. Should it perhaps be 1 cup water to two cups sugar? The cake itself is nice, but a bit dry without the syrup.
Helen S.
see 3 more reviews
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RECIPE SUBMITTED BY
Zurie
South Africa
- 164 Followers
- 342 Recipes
- 24 Tweaks
I'm a widow, retired, and I love cooking. I live on the coast in South Africa and I love seafood. You're welcome to my recipes (all kinds, definitely not just seafood!) Just remember that no recipe is ever cast in stone -- adjust to your taste! The photo was taken at a rustic seaside restaurant on our West Coast, approx 1 year ago (2016).
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