Baked Christmas Pudding and Rum Sauce

Light Christmas pudding. My family does not like all the peel and dried fruits. This pudding is very tasty without being to heavy. This recipe was printed in the local newspaper 25 years ago.

• Ready In: 1 hr 35 mins
• Serves: 10

Ingredients

• Pudding

• 1⁄2 cup margarine or 1⁄2 cup shortening
• 1  cup sugar
• 2  eggs, well beaten
• 2 1⁄2 cups  mincemeat
• 2  cups flour
• 1⁄2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1⁄2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1⁄2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1⁄2 teaspoon salt
• 1⁄3 cup  grape jelly
• 1⁄3 cup  orange juice
• 1  orange, rind of, grated
• 3  teaspoons baking powder
• 1  cup walnuts (optional)

• Rum Sauce

• 1⁄2 cup butter, melted
• 2  cups brown sugar
• 2  tablespoons cornstarch
• 2  cups cold water
• 2  teaspoons rum (or to taste) or 2  teaspoons  rum flavoring (or to taste)

Directions

1. Pudding:
2. Cream margarine. Add sugar, eggs and mincemeat. Sift dry ingredients. Combine jelly, orange peel, juice and add alternately with flour mixture. Stir in 1 cup walnuts (optional). Pour into greased 10 inch tube pan. Bake in 325 degree oven for 80-90 minutes. Cool and unmold. (the mincemeat used in this recipe is canned mincemeat used for fruit pies, not ground meat).
3. Sauce:
4. Combine sugar, butter and cornstarch. Dissolve in water. Bring slowly to boiling point stirring occasionally. Cook until thickened. Remove from heat.
5. Serve over pudding. If sauce has cooled at serving time reheat.