PREAMBLE

A good chum of mine is very fond of this dish, and often serves it at dinner parties. I understand that it was developed for Queen Victoria, hence the title.

INGREDIENTS

This should be enough to serve 4 people.

 4oz of breadcrumbs.

 10oz of caster sugar.

 Zest (grated rind) of 1 fresh lemon.

 1 pint of milk.

 4 eggs, separate the yolks from the whites.

 4 tablespoons of raspberry jam.

 Butter.

PREPARATION

 Mix the breadcrumbs, zest and 2oz of sugar together in a bowl.

 Bring the milk to the boil.

 Blend the milk into the breadcrumb mixture.

 Add the egg yolks to the above mixture and stir thoroughly.

 Generously butter an appropriately sized baking dish.

 Allow to rest for 30 minutes.

COOKING

 Place in an oven preheated to 180 degrees, and bake for approximately 40-50 minutes until set.

 Leave the oven on, and increase the temperature to 200 degrees.

 Allow the pudding to stand for 15 minutes.

 Warm the jam and spread over the top of the pudding.

 Place the egg whites in a large bowl and whisk until stiff, the bowl should be able to be inverted without the mixture dropping out.

 Blend in the sugar, gradually, using a wooden spoon. If you drop it in all at once your meringue mixture will lose its stiffness, as the air will be knocked out of it.

 Spoon, with the wooden spoon, the meringue over the top of the pudding.

 Place the pudding back into the oven and bake for approximately 15-20 minutes until the meringue begins to turn golden brown.

TIPS

This is quite a sweet desert and I would suggest you forgo the normal desert wine (which in itself is sweet) in favour of a dry alternative, say Chablis.

Meringues can be a little temperamental. Here are a few technical notes regarding the preparation of meringues:

 The stiffness of the meringue mixture is achieved by adding air to the egg white.

 Should you be making meringue on a humid/muggy day you will not achieve as good a result as on a dry day (check your barometer before making meringue!).

 When adding the sugar it should be done gradually so as not to knock the air out.

 Use a wooden spoon, or plastic spatula, when blending the sugar into the egg whites and spooning the mixture. Cold metal spoons bruise the mixture and will not get the results that you desire.

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