My recipe for School Chocolate Sponge & Chocolate Custard is a real blast from the past! It’s my version of a favourite school pudding.
Retro Recipe Revival for a School Dinners Pudding
My recipe for School Chocolate Sponge & Chocolate Custard is a real blast from the past!
It’s my version of a favourite school dinner’s pudding.
Big squares of chocolate sponge cake, always baked in a big roasting tin, were served with lashings of chocolate custard.
It was the best pudding ever on a wet, windy or cold school day, and the portions were always very generous too.
I’ve not shared a recipe for 24 portions (or more!) of School Chocolate Sponge & Chocolate Custard today, just 9 large squares for your dining pleasure!
This is a delightfully rich and light chocolate cake and it reheats well in the microwave.
You can serve it with Pink Custard if you like, but we prefer a double chocolate whammy.
The custard is unashamedly made with Bird’s Custard Powder, as I’m sure the school cooks made it, with added cocoa powder.
And, as you can see from the photos, it’s a lovely glossy and shiny custard, which goes perfectly with the chocolate sponge.
This keeps well too, in the an airtight tin, and it can be eaten naked (the cake that is, not you!) if you prefer.
Or why not add some chocolate icing or buttercream with some hundreds and thousands, for a chocolate version of my Retro School Dinner Iced Tray Bake Cake?
I have shared this in July, which is of course summer in the Northern Hemisphere, as we’ve been hit with some unseasonly cold and wet weather.
But I think this is a year round pud, so please enjoy it whatever the season if you make it, and please do let me know if you enjoyed it. Karen
Culinary Notes
- For a thicker custard, use 450mls (3/4 pint) of milk.
- Once cold, store the sponge in an airtight tin.
- Reheat the sponge in the microwave for future pudding servings.
- You can serve it with Pink Custard if you like.
- You can get packets of instant custard powder mixtures, make up according to the packet adding the cocoa powder before adding the boiling water.
More “School” Recipes
More Pudding Recipes
Recipe for School Chocolate Sponge & Chocolate Custard
School Chocolate Sponge & Chocolate Custard
My recipe for School Chocolate Sponge & Chocolate Custard is a real blast from the past! It's my version of a favourite school dinner's pudding.
Big squares of chocolate sponge cake, always baked in a big roasting tin, were served with lashings of chocolate custard.
It was the best pudding ever on a wet, windy or cold school day, and the portions were always very generous too.
I've not shared a recipe for 24 portions (or more!) of School Chocolate Sponge & Chocolate Custard today, just 9 large squares for your dining pleasure!
This is a delightfully rich and light chocolate cake and it reheats well in the microwave. You can serve it with Pink Custard if you like, but we prefer a double chocolate whammy.
The custard is unashamedly made with Bird's Custard Powder, as I'm sure the school cooks made it, with added cocoa powder.
And, as you can see from the photos, it's a lovely glossy and shiny custard, which goes perfectly with the chocolate sponge.
This keeps well too, in the an airtight tin, and it can be eaten naked (the cake that is, not you!) if you prefer.
Or why not add some chocolate icing or buttercream with some hundreds and thousands, for a chocolate version of my Retro School Dinner Iced Tray Bake Cake?
I have shared this in July, which is of course summer in the Northern Hemisphere, as we've been hit with some unseasonly cold and wet weather.
But I rhink this is a year round pud, so please enjoy it whatever the season if you make it, and please do let me know if you enjoyed it.
Ingredients
- Chocolate Sponge:
- 180g butter or margarine, softened
- 180g golden caster sugar
- 3 large eggs, beaten
- 180g self-raising flour
- 3 tablespoons cocoa powder
- Chocolate Custard:
- 600mls whole milk
- 3 tablespoons custard powder
- 1 1/2 tablespoons cocoa powder
- 2 tablespoons sugar
Instructions
- Chocolate Sponge: Pre-heat oven to 180C/160C Fan/375F/Gas mark 4 and grease and line a square ( 9" x 9") 23cm x 23cm baking tin with baking paper.
- Put the margarine or butter, sugar, eggs, SR flour amd cocoa into a mixing bowl and beat with a hand hand electric mixer for 2 to 3 minutes, until all of the ingredients are amalgamated and the mixture is light and fluffy.
- Pour or spoon the sponge mixture into the prepared baking tin and bake for 25 to 30 minutes until the sponge cake springs back when touched in the middle, and is well risen.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes. Cut into squares to serve whilst still warm, with chocolate custard.
- Chocolate Custard: Put the custard powder, cocoa powder and the sugar into a mixing bowl and add a little of the milk to make a thick paste.
- Heat the remaining milk in a saucepan until it is hot but not boiling.
- Pour the hot milk over the custard powder mixture and stir well until dissolved.
- Pour all of the mixture back into the saucepan and bring to boil stirring all the time so it doesn't "catch" on the bottom of the pan.
- Once the mixture has thickened, remove from the heat, pour into a jug and serve with the chocolate sponge.
Notes
For a thicker custard, use 450mls (3/4 pint) of milk.
Once cold, store the sponge in an airtight tin.
Reheat the sponge in the microwave for future pudding servings.
You can serve it with Pink Custard if you like.
You can get packets of instant custard powder mixtures, make up according to the packet adding the cocoa powder before adding the boiling water.
Nutrition Information
Yield 9 Serving Size 1Amount Per Serving Calories 394Total Fat 21gSaturated Fat 13gTrans Fat 1gUnsaturated Fat 7gCholesterol 115mgSodium 427mgCarbohydrates 45gFiber 1gSugar 27gProtein 7g
Sue says
My favourite pud made it all the time when the kids were small.
Custard is how I make it nice and thick though
Karen Burns-Booth says
I do like a thicker custard or sauce!
Julie O'Sullivan says
When I was a kid, we were allowed to choose our favourite dinner on our birthday and this was always my choice of pudding. Except we called it chocolate pudding and chocolate sauce. It would never have been made with custard powder because I have hated that all my life!!!
Karen Burns-Booth says
It’s a big favourite with lots of people!
Daniella says
Looks delicious! Can you sub normal caster sugar for golden?
Karen Burns-Booth says
Yes, absolutely! 🙂
Ashley says
A fabulous recipe which I will be trying and sharing with my kids at the weekend! A bit of nostalgia! Thanks for sharing. xxx
Karen Burns-Booth says
My pleasure! I’ll be sharing more soon too, Karen
Beth says
My batter was so thick !
More like brownie batter than cake is this right?
Karen Burns-Booth says
Yes! It is a thick cake batter.