Christmas puddingA small wedge is enough. Bring the custard hot in a jug.
Eve's pudding (apples baked under sponge)Scoop down to the apples so every bowl gets sponge and apple.
Jam and coconut spongeCut squares from the tray and sit each one in a pool of custard.
Jam roly-polyCut thick slices so the jam spiral shows, then pour the custard alongside.
Malva pudding (South African baked pudding with apricot jam)Serve the pudding warm and the custard cold.
Pineapple upside-down cakeServe it warm, pineapple side up, and pour the custard at the table.
Spotted dick (steamed currant pudding)Pour the custard round the slice so the top stays dry.
Steamed chocolate spongePlain custard works, or stir a spoonful of cocoa into it first.
Sussex pond pudding (suet pudding, often with a whole lemon)Cut it open at the table and pour custard round each wedge.
Treacle sponge puddingTurn it out syrup side up and flood the plate with hot custard.
Crumbles, pies and tarts 6
Apple crumbleSpoon the custard beside the crumble, not on it, to keep the topping crisp.
Apple pieServe the slice hot and pour the custard over at the table.
Bakewell tartServe a wedge just warm with hot custard round it.
Jam tartsWarm them through and pour the custard round, not over the jam.
Mince piesLift the lid of a warm pie and pour a little custard inside.
Treacle tartWarm the tart through and serve a thin slice with plenty of custard.
Fruit 4
Mixed fruit saladStir the chopped pieces through cold custard and chill before serving.
Sliced bananasSlice them into the bowl at the last minute and pour warm custard over.
Stewed rhubarbSpoon the sharp rhubarb in first and let the custard run into it.
Tinned peachesDrain them well so the syrup does not thin the custard.
Cake, biscuits and cold desserts 7
Dark fruit cakeWarm a slice and pour hot custard over it like a pudding.
Ginger cake (parkin)Serve a sticky square with hot custard poured over.
Soft meringues (floating islands)Float a spoonful of meringue on a shallow bowl of thin, cold custard.
Sponge fingersDip them into a small bowl of cold custard.
Sponge, jelly and fruit, layered as a trifleBuild it in a glass bowl with the custard as the thick middle layer.
Swiss roll slicesLay a slice flat in the bowl and cover it with warm custard.
Wafer biscuitsStand one in a bowl of cold custard for some crunch.
With vanilla sauce, in Germany and Austria 5
Milk-cream strudel (Millirahmstrudel)Serve it warm from the pan with the hot sauce ladled over.
Plum jam dumpling with poppy seeds (Germknödel)Pour the sauce round the dumpling and leave the poppy seeds on top.
Pull-apart sweet rolls (Buchteln)Bring the pan to the table and let people pull off a roll to dip.
Red berry pudding (rote Grütze)Pour the sauce cold over the tart berries in a glass dish.
Steamed sweet dumplings (Dampfnudeln)Tear one open at the table and pour the sauce into the middle.
Nigerian bean dishes eaten with custard 2
Bean fritters (akara)Eat them hot beside the bowl, dipping as you go.
Steamed bean pudding (moi moi)Serve a warm portion next to the custard, a spoon of each in turn.
How it works
What to eat with custard? Something hot from the steamer or the oven, a bowl of fruit, or a slice of plain cake. These 34 ideas add German and Austrian dumplings and two Nigerian bean dishes.
Read the full guide
A sauce for hot puddings
Custard runs from a thin pouring sauce to a thick pastry cream, and the pouring kind goes over cakes and fruit. In Britain it is the traditional partner of apple pie; spotted dick and treacle sponge often come with it, and a crumble takes custard, cream or ice cream. In Germany and Austria, steamed dumplings and sweet rolls can come with vanilla sauce.
Hot custard or cold
Pour hot custard round a steamed or baked pudding at the table, so the sponge or pastry stays crisp on top. Cold custard is for spooning: over fruit or sliced cake, or layered into a trifle. Malva pudding is the exception, served warm with its custard cold.
Questions and answers
What do you eat with custard?
A hot pudding or tart with the custard poured over as a sauce: Eve's pudding, treacle tart and Christmas pudding all take it. Fruit, plain cake and biscuits are the quick answers: slice, pour and eat.
What fruit goes with custard?
Soft or cooked fruit: sliced bananas, tinned peaches, or a fruit salad with custard as its sauce. Stewed rhubarb stirred into custard makes a rhubarb fool.
What cake goes with custard?
A plain one that soaks it up: Swiss roll, ginger cake or sponge fingers. Jam roly-poly is rolled like a Swiss roll but made as a suet pudding, and it is traditionally served with custard.
What do you eat with custard in Nigeria?
Bean dishes. Akara, a fritter of black-eyed peas and a common breakfast dish, is commonly eaten with custard, and moi moi, a steamed bean pudding, is eaten with custard too.