Chef Juliette
Almond Pudding
Six almond-lined moulds, gently poached until softly risen, with white-wine sabayon scented by orgeat. The lesson is simple and exact: the bain-marie must tremble, never boil.
Culinary Explorer
A cooking platform built around craft, culture, and the stories behind what we eat.
Marrow Pudding
Created by Chef Juliette
Based on No. 2488, Marrow Pudding, from Le Guide Culinaire (1907) by Auguste Escoffier
A fruit-studded Pouding à la Moelle, gently poached until tender, with beef marrow and suet melted invisibly into its crumb and warm rum sabayon spooned generously around each slice.
Desserts
French
Special Occasion
Dinner Party
Holiday
40 min
Active Time
1 hr 15 min cook•2 hr 10 min total
YieldOne 1-quart pudding (6 servings)
Pouding à la Moelle (beef marrow pudding) teaches a quiet pastry truth: properly handled fat can disappear into a sweet without leaving greasiness. Marrow and suet do not announce themselves as beef. Rendered gently, they give the crumb a soft, melting richness that carries candied fruit and raisins, while sabayon au rhum, a warm rum custard foam, keeps each slice lush rather than heavy.
The book's pudding assumed a deep border mould, a broad bain-marie, and enough diners to justify eleven eggs. For one cook, one stove, one evening, the core formula is halved exactly and poached in a 1-quart ring mould set inside an ordinary roasting pan. Brigade volume is scaffolding and can go. The marrow-to-suet ratio, milk-soaked pressed crumbs, egg-rich binding, candied fruit, and water-bath poach are the dish, so all of them stay.
Turned out warm, the Pouding à la Moelle should hold a clean ring while remaining tender inside, with jewel-like fruit through every cut face and pale rum sabayon pooling around the slice. The one step that decides it comes before the yolks: cool the rendered fat to tepid, between 95 and 100°F (35 and 38°C), fluid but no longer hot. Hot fat scrambles them on contact; cold fat beads through the batter.
Pouding à la moelle belongs to the grand kitchens of Paris, where French cooks absorbed the British family of boiled and steamed puddings and recast them in precise moulds with separate sauces. The marrow, suet, candied fruit, and raisins preserve that ancestry, while the even border mould and rum sabayon mark its passage into French service. Marrow is not a savory garnish here; once gently rendered, it becomes the fine, melting fat of the crumb, a use sweet cooks understood for generations.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
unsalted butter
Quantity
1 tablespoon (15 ml / 14 g)
softened, for the mould
all-purpose flour
Quantity
1 tablespoon (15 ml / 8 g)
for dredging the mould
cleaned raw beef marrow
Quantity
½ cup (120 ml / 113 g)
removed from the bones and membranes
beef kidney suet
Quantity
¼ cup loosely packed (60 ml / 28 g)
chilled and finely grated
powdered sugar
Quantity
1 cup (240 ml / 113 g)
sifted
fine fresh white breadcrumbs
Quantity
1 cup loosely packed (240 ml / 43 g)
whole milk
Quantity
¾ cup (180 ml / 180 g)
for soaking the breadcrumbs
beaten whole egg
Quantity
5 tablespoons (75 ml / 75 g; from about 1½ large eggs)
at room temperature
large egg yolks, for the pudding
Quantity
4 (about ¼ cup / 60 ml / 72 g)
at room temperature
mixed candied fruit
Quantity
¾ cup (180 ml / 113 g)
cut into ¼-inch dice
sultanas
Quantity
¼ cup (60 ml / 43 g)
seeded Malaga raisins, or dark muscat raisins
Quantity
3 tablespoons (45 ml / 28 g)
chopped if large
large egg yolks, for the sabayon
Quantity
4 (about ¼ cup / 60 ml / 72 g)
superfine sugar, for the sabayon
Quantity
¼ cup (60 ml / 50 g)
water, for the sabayon
Quantity
¼ cup (60 ml / 60 g)
dark rum, for the sabayon
Quantity
3 tablespoons (45 ml / 43 g)
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| unsalted buttersoftened, for the mould | 1 tablespoon (15 ml / 14 g) |
| all-purpose flourfor dredging the mould | 1 tablespoon (15 ml / 8 g) |
| cleaned raw beef marrowremoved from the bones and membranes | ½ cup (120 ml / 113 g) |
| beef kidney suetchilled and finely grated | ¼ cup loosely packed (60 ml / 28 g) |
| powdered sugarsifted | 1 cup (240 ml / 113 g) |
| fine fresh white breadcrumbs | 1 cup loosely packed (240 ml / 43 g) |
| whole milkfor soaking the breadcrumbs | ¾ cup (180 ml / 180 g) |
| beaten whole eggat room temperature | 5 tablespoons (75 ml / 75 g; from about 1½ large eggs) |
| large egg yolks, for the puddingat room temperature | 4 (about ¼ cup / 60 ml / 72 g) |
| mixed candied fruitcut into ¼-inch dice | ¾ cup (180 ml / 113 g) |
| sultanas | ¼ cup (60 ml / 43 g) |
| seeded Malaga raisins, or dark muscat raisinschopped if large | 3 tablespoons (45 ml / 28 g) |
| large egg yolks, for the sabayon | 4 (about ¼ cup / 60 ml / 72 g) |
| superfine sugar, for the sabayon | ¼ cup (60 ml / 50 g) |
| water, for the sabayon | ¼ cup (60 ml / 60 g) |
| dark rum, for the sabayon | 3 tablespoons (45 ml / 43 g) |
Equipment Needed
- •4-cup (1-quart / 1-liter) smooth metal ring mould or small simple Bundt mould
- •Deep roasting pan for the bain-marie
- •Heatproof mixing bowl and saucepan
- •Fine-mesh sieve
- •Instant-read thermometer
Instructions
- 1
Prepare the mould
Heat the oven to 325°F (160°C) with a rack in the center. Butter a 4-cup (1-quart / 1-liter) smooth metal ring mould generously, reaching every corner, then dredge it with the flour and tap out the excess. Set the mould inside a deep roasting pan and bring a kettle of water nearly to the boil.
- 2
Render the fats
Put the cleaned marrow and grated suet in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan containing 1 inch (2.5 cm) of barely simmering water. The bowl must not touch the water. Melt the fats gently, stirring occasionally, until clear and fluid, 8 to 12 minutes; browning would give this sweet pudding a roasted flavor it does not want. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a wide mixing bowl, then cool to between 95 and 100°F (35 and 38°C). If the fat remains hot, set the bowl briefly in cold water and whisk. If it turns cloudy or begins setting, return it to the bain-marie for five seconds. Ça se rattrape. Do not bring in the eggs until the fat is fluid and merely tepid.
Fresh marrow should smell clean and faint. Any sour or strongly beefy odor will remain in the pudding, so change the marrow rather than trying to cover it with more rum. - 3
Soak and press crumbs
While the fats cool, cover the breadcrumbs with the milk and leave them for 5 minutes. Press them firmly in a fine sieve with the back of a spoon until they are evenly damp but no longer release milk when squeezed. This pressing matters: wet crumbs dilute the egg structure, while dry crumbs leave the pudding coarse.
- 4
Build the pudding batter
Work the tepid marrow and suet with the powdered sugar until smooth and creamy, then work in the pressed breadcrumbs. Whisk the measured whole egg with the four pudding yolks just until blended, without raising a foam. Add this egg mixture in four additions, stirring each one completely into the batter before the next. If the batter separates into greasy grains, the temperatures have drifted apart; hold the bowl over the still-warm bain-marie for five seconds while whisking, then remove it as soon as it smooths. Never leave it sitting over the heat.
- 5
Fold in the fruit
Fold in the diced candied fruit, sultanas, and seeded raisins until they are evenly dispersed. Scrape the batter into the prepared mould, press it lightly into the bottom to exclude large air pockets, and smooth the top. Give the mould one firm tap on a folded towel, no more, so the fruit remains suspended rather than sinking.
- 6
Poach in bain-marie
Pour the near-boiling water into the roasting pan until it reaches halfway up the mould. Transfer the pan carefully to the oven and poach for 50 to 65 minutes. The water should barely quiver, never boil hard; if it becomes lively, lower the oven and add a little cool water. The pudding is ready when its surface springs softly, a thin skewer emerges without liquid egg, and the center reaches 170 to 175°F (77 to 79°C). Moist crumbs on the skewer are correct.
- 7
Unmould while warm
Lift the mould from the bain-marie and rest it for 12 minutes. Run a thin knife around both edges, set a serving platter over the mould, and invert them together with confidence. If the pudding refuses to release, return only the bottom of the mould to the warm water for 10 seconds, dry it, and try again. Do not pull at the pudding; the brief warmth loosens the fat cleanly.
- 8
Whisk the rum sabayon
While the pudding rests, whisk the four sabayon yolks with the superfine sugar and water in a clean heatproof bowl. Set it over barely simmering water and whisk constantly until the mixture becomes pale, triples in volume, holds a broad ribbon, and reaches 160°F (71°C), about 6 to 8 minutes. Lift it from the heat and whisk in the rum gradually. If the edges begin to grain, move the bowl immediately to the counter and whisk in 1 teaspoon of cold water until smooth.
- 9
Sauce and serve
Cut the warm Pouding à la Moelle into generous wedges. Spoon the sabayon around each slice rather than burying the fruit-studded cut face, and bring the remaining sauce to the table in a small sauceboat. The pudding should be warm, the sabayon freshly whisked, and nobody should be waiting. À table!
Chef Tips
- •Ask a butcher for fresh femur marrow already removed from the bones if possible. If you buy marrow bones, soak the exposed marrow in cold water for 30 minutes, changing the water once, then lift it out, remove every membrane, dry it well, and weigh it only after cleaning.
- •Use hard beef kidney suet, not ordinary beef trimmings or packaged shredded suet already coated in flour. That small measure supplies the clean-setting fat specified by the pudding; butter would soften the structure and change its flavor.
- •Malaga raisins are large muscat raisins and may contain seeds. When they cannot be found, dark muscat raisins are the honest equivalent, but keep the lighter sultanas separate because their fruitiness is part of the original balance.
- •A smooth metal ring mould gives the most even poach and the cleanest release. A small, simply fluted metal Bundt mould is the useful home equivalent; avoid deep decorative crevices that trap the candied fruit.
- •Serve the pudding warm rather than scorching. Sabayon waits poorly, so whisk it as the pudding rests and carry it straight to the table.
Advance Preparation
- •The marrow can be cleaned and the suet grated one day ahead. Keep each tightly covered in the cold, then bring the eggs to room temperature before mixing.
- •The candied fruit and raisins can be measured and cut earlier in the day, and the mould can be buttered, floured, covered, and held in the cold.
- •The pudding may be poached one day ahead and chilled in its mould. Reheat it in a 300°F (150°C) bain-marie for 20 to 25 minutes before unmoulding. The sabayon must still be made just before serving.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 165g)
Calories
555 calories
Total Fat
31 g
Saturated Fat
13 g
Trans Fat
1 g
Unsaturated Fat
15 g
Cholesterol
345 mg
Sodium
105 mg
Total Carbohydrates
59 g
Dietary Fiber
1 g
Sugars
51 g
Protein
9 g
Where cooking meets culture.
Culinary guides, cultural storytelling, and the editorial depth that makes cooking meaningful.
Discover Culinary ExplorerMore from Entremets (Sweets) - Puddings
Browse the full collection
Chef Juliette
English Almond Pudding
Butter worked to a true pommade carries almonds, eggs, orange-flower water, and cream into a tender pouding, gently set in a bain-marie and brought to the table in the very dish that baked it.
Chef Juliette
Biscuit Pudding
Pouding aux biscuits turns crushed ladyfingers, hot milk, kirsch-soaked fruit, butter, and yolks into a tender pudding, with five late-folded whites keeping every spoonful light beneath warm apricot sauce.
Chef Juliette
Cabinet Pudding
Liqueur-soaked biscuits, jewel-bright fruit, and vanilla custard are packed into one mould and poached without a bubble. Fill slowly, and every slice holds its cabinet of colours.