4 slices bread, torn in pieces
1 c. milk
6 oz. beef suet, ground
1 c. brown sugar, packed
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 c. orange juice
1 tsp. vanilla
2 c. raisins
1 c. snipped pitted currants
1/2 c. diced, mixed candied fruits & peels
1/2 c. walnuts, chopped
1 c. all-purpose flour
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground cloves
1 tsp. ground mace
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt

Soak bread in milk; beat to break up. Stir in ground suet, brown sugar, eggs, orange juice and vanilla. In a large bowl, combine raisins, currants, candied fruits and peels, and nuts. Stir together the flour, cinnamon, cloves, mace, soda and salt; add to the fruit mixture and mix well. Stir in the bread-suet mixture; mix well. Pour into well-greased 2-quart mold (do not use ring mold or tube pan). Cover the mold with foil and tie foil on tightly with string.

TO SERVE: Place the mold on rack in deep kettle; add boiling water to the kettle to depth of 1 inch. Cover and steam the pudding 3 1/2 hours; add more boiling water when needed. Cool the pudding about 10 minutes; remove from the mold. Serve the pudding with hard sauce, if desired. Serves 16.

HARD SAUCE:

8 oz. butter
1 oz. brown sugar
7 oz. powdered sugar
1/2 oz. honey

Mix ingredients until smooth. Roll into bars or pipe into rosettes. Keep chilled. Place hard sauce on top of hot pudding when ready to serve.