Jubilee Twist: Citrus Bell Pudding

An American take on an award-winning British dessert.

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08.24.2022

In celebration of Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee, the UK’s Fortnum & Mason hosted a national Platinum Pudding Contest. With 5,000 entries, the top prize went to a lemon and Swiss roll amaretti trifle dubbed the “People’s Pudding.” 

At the heart of the recipe was a reference to a 1744 nursery rhyme — “oranges and lemons, say the bells of St. Clement’s” — referring to citrus fruits that were offloaded at nearby wharves when the Thames ran closer to the church. The St. Clement Danes Church in the City of Westminster still celebrates this tradition each March, as children in attendance receive oranges and lemons after service.

Home cooks around the world, however, soon ran into trouble making the dessert themselves, finding the ingredients difficult and expensive to source and more than five hours needed to prepare it. 

Enticed by the flavors and never ones to stick to the original recipe, NJI set out to create a St. Clement’s-inspired pudding with that same award-winning citrus twist. We considered the original trifle flavors, textures, and colors in this recipe remake. We hope you find our Citrus Bell Pudding, the easier and more economical version, to be a favorite all year. 

Citrus Bell Pudding garnished with sugared orange peel and blood orange macaron.

Citrus Bell Pudding

Makes approximately 18 ramekins or one 9×13 dish 

St. Clement’s Pudding

1 large package (6oz) Orange Jell-O gelatin

1 small package (4.6oz) Lemon Jell-O Cook & Serve Pudding 

¾ cup granulated sugar

3 beaten egg yolks (strained)

Water

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White Chocolate Cream 

1 ½ cups heavy whipping cream

1 cup milk

⅓ cup powdered sugar

1 (3.3oz) White Chocolate Jell-O Instant Pudding 

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Garnishes

White Chocolate Bar

Store-bought Orange or Citrus French Macarons

Candied Mandarin or Orange Peel* (Total time: 2 hours)

1 orange or 3 mandarin oranges

1 ½ cup granulated sugar

10 oz water

Instructions

Step One (15-20 minutes minus refrigeration)

Make orange Jell-O with water according to package directions. Set aside. 

In a medium saucepan on medium heat, cook lemon pudding according to directions, stirring constantly until thick. 

Remove pudding from heat and whisk into orange Jell-O.

Pour into individual ramekins or rectangle serving dish. Pop any large bubbles with a toothpick.

Refrigerate overnight. 

Step Two (10-20 minutes)

Make whipped topping by combining cream, milk, sugar, and white chocolate instant pudding. 

Mix with a hand mixer until thick.

Pipe using an icing bag with a large star tip onto set ramekin pudding.

Alternatively, skip making white chocolate cream entirely and use store-bought whipped cream.

Step Three (10-20 minutes)

Create white chocolate curls with a paring knife or vegetable peeler.

Sprinkle white chocolate curls onto whipped cream.

Garnish each ramekin with one macaron and one peel curl or candied heart. 

*To make candied citrus peel: prepare peel after Jell-O steps are complete and let harden until next day. Store in a plastic container once cool. If using store-bought peel, sprinkle small pieces along with white chocolate curls onto whipped cream before serving.

Dissolve sugar in water over medium low heat. Drop narrow strips of fruit peel into clear sugar water and let simmer, uncovered, for 45 minutes. (The sharp end of a vegetable peeler does a good job of removing long spirals of peel from oranges, whereas it is easier to cut hearts out of mandarin peels with scissors. Mandarin is milder in taste than the orange). Using a fork or tongs, remove peel from hot liquid, dust with sugar (optional), and place on a parchment-lined baking tray. To make curls, wrap strips of orange peel around wooden skewers before baking. Bake at 175 degrees Fahrenheit for 1 hour.

h/t to Lynette Steger, NJI Content Strategist, for creating this tempting new recipe

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