BREAD and butter pudding - the perfect winter pud!

This recipe has been sitting in the draft box on my computer for a very long time now.

I stumbled on it, and it did brighten up a very gloomy, wet and cold day off work in the end.

This delicious, classic dessert is also a great way to use up stale bread and a whole lot tastier than toast!

I've been baking bread and butter pudding for so many years now and I've tried out many variations of this wartime Yorkshire dish.

I'm also a bit of a lazy home-baker this time of the year, I have to admit, so this Soreen and marmalade recipe is a easy one without fancy arranging of bread pieces.

There is no fuss when making the custard, and there are raisins in the malt loaf which have already been added.

But like many of our best desserts, bread and butter pudding is not something that can be thrown together at the last minute – it needs time to get to know its custard sauce before you bake it, so a good soak is the order of the day.

A well-made bread and butter pudding can't be hurried and doesn't deserve to be messed about with – this is thrifty cooking at its finest and even the poor birds won't get a look in.

I'm not a big Nigel Slater fan with his little extras pulled out from his well-organised fridge in little brown paper bags.

His version on this classic pud uses added extra touches like coconut milk, bone marrow and hot toddy, soaking the fruit overnight in rum or brandy which must provide a quivering taste with every mouthful.

Keep it simple I say, Nigel!

Soreen malt loaf is one of those foods that always takes me straight back to my childhood, and this recipe does use the classic and original malted loaf which I just love.

It’s always been proper comfort food – then and now - and I may add it’s low in fat. Cut it up into slices and slather it with cold best butter, and it is soft and chewy when eaten.

The added tang for the recipe comes from mum's home-made marmalade, made from Seville oranges, which works wonderfully with anything else.

It’s the perfect combination being warming and pleasing with every gooey spoonful –take note Nigel!

Finally to you non-bloggers, you may be unaware of a few idiosyncrasies of us baking foodies, that any baking must be photographed while natural light is at its best.

Therefore, the poor family learns to patiently wait while the hundreds of photos are perfectly styled and cropped to size.

Talk about torment for the poor family, but well worth the wait in the end when it's been warmed up in the microwave with a can of piping hot custard and full bellies!

• If you’ve missed any of Baker Mike’s previous recipes, visit keighleynews.co.uk, click What’s On then Food & Drink.