South African Malvapoeding (Marshmallow Pudding)

Not reviewing this recipe, but answering LORRAINE32's question ... superfine sugar is NOT confectioner's sugar. It is like granulated sugar but with much smaller pieces ... I make my own by putting granulated sugar in a food processor until it's finer, and it works great. Also, cake flour comes in a box in the grocery store near the other flours; not sure exactly how it's different from all-purpose flour, but it is - and it IS different from a cake mix.

My husband made this for me after seeing it made on an Oprah show. Halfway through baking he poured the sauce on it like shown on the show. He used seedless blackberry preserves instead because I don't like apricot. It was wonderful! I am begging him to make for me w/lemon curd! As a tip to others, cake flour is just fine sifted flour. Superfine sugar can be made by giving your regular sugar a zip in the food processor.

Really yummy recipe...Just to clear things up, the word "pudding" in British/South African English means "dessert", so all you Americans out there can stop being confused by the description already. Use regular flour if you want, and put your sugar in the blender to make it superfine. Follow the instructions and you won't go wrong! Thanks!

As a response to other reviews only.Cake flour is not just a sifted flour. Cake flour has different properties which makes it a weak flour, in turn that's why cakes need binders and such, also they are generally lighter, as opposed to bread flour which have properties that are unique and makes bread flour a strong flour. That's why breads are generally tougher than cakes. A.P. flour can be substituted for any of these but the ending results will differ slightly from its intended texture.

Being a South African this recipe is the one my mom taught me when I was younger. but I have to say that it was surprising to see that the translation of the name is marshmallow pudding :) I've never heard that before. To the questions that was asked... if the center of the pudding falls in don't stress when you pour the sauce over it will again puff up. before you pour the sauce over use a knife to get the sides loose. This makes the sauce absorb easier and the end is a awesome saucy pudding enjoy

This is an incredible recipe, and one that (for once) I followed to the letter. For those expecting a pudding... don't. It is a rich, moist and spongy cake. The sauce makes this a decadent dessert, and one that I will definitely repeat.

I made this last night and loved it - it's just as I remember it! It turned out perfectly and absolutely delicious. I definitely recommend using orange juice (instead of water or sherry). Serve it with warm custard to top off a wonderful dessert (or anytime treat :).

Cake flour: has a less expansive gluten for crumblier texture. Acceptable substitution is to remove 2 T all purpose flour per cup as required for the recipe. I think that commercially available cake flour contains some cornstarch, but I'm not certain.

What did I do wrong? The outside browned way too soon, finished much before the suggested time and the inside was brown, (is it supposed to be white?) and it "fell" early. I can tell I would like this but I must have used too much sugar or something. Can someone be more specific about what superfine sugar is. I used confectioner's sugar. Also, what is cake flour? Is that just regular white flour? I used cake mix. Thank you for any replies-the flavors are great-I hope I can find out how I can correct the overdoneness- is 350 the correct temperature?

This was so delicious. I didn't quite know what to expect with this recipe with a name like Marshmallow Pudding and reading some of the ingredients but I was more than pleasantly surprised I used orange juice and about 3/4 cups at that, but added some sugar to the sauce. I don't quite know if the cake, or whatever I would call it, was supposed to fall a bit in the middle. No matter what it was decadent, unique, and something I will definately make again in the future! The hubby absolutely loved it too!

Some Afrikaans recipe books refer to "Cake flour" meaning all purpose flour.

Yumeee!!! This is the perfect pudding for a cold or rainy day (actually, any day will do :-). There are many recipes for this pudding, but being an Afrikaner myself, I can guarantee that this is a winner. I've made it for years and have always used orange juice. The orange juice gives it that perfect taste. This is a very rich pudding (dessert) and should be served in small portions. Go on, try it!! I'm sure you'll love it too!! Thanks for posting this recipe.

This was a HUGE hit. Thank you so much! It even tastes good reheated. Just pop a slice in the microwave for 12 seconds and you have an even better taste than the first. I made it exactly as the original recipe suggest. PERFECT!

Need a hot pudding in a rush - make this one. It is brilliant and is one of the quickest and easiest puddings to make. I prefer using orange juice for the sauce. Served with cream or custard my family loves it.

Mmmm! So good. I give 10 stars! I did every thing exactly as written only i used blackberry jam insted of the apricot (as suggested but another reviewer). It was a wonderful flavor. I will make this again and again!

Everyone in my house loved it. We tried it hot and then put it in the fridge and had it again when it was cold. It's very good both ways. I used water to make it the first time, and I'm sure I'll make it again and try the OJ and eventually the sherry too. Thanks for the great recipe.

I thought the apricot made it taste funny

I was not impressed with this recipe at all. The name leads one to believe it has a fluffy, marshmallow-like texture, resembling a lightweight pudding. It's a cake, not a pudding. The flavor was okay but it is on the greasy side. I'm confused as to some of the higher ratings on this site because I'm not a new cook, I followed the directions explicitly.

This was very good! It's a fruit cake. Do not double the recipe though, rookie mistake by me. :) It affects the way the middle of the cake bakes. However, itwas very good! I would definitely make it again.

Absolutely delicious! I used seedless boysenberry jam. Had the perfect bread pudding texture I wanted!

I had no idea what to expect when I first made this and I was pleasantly surprised. I used fig jelly instead of apricot, but it tasted really nice. The texture was very interesting, in between a cake and a fluffy pudding. Will definitley make again.

My pudding fell halfway through the baking and was WAY overcooked -- brown and dry-looking inside all along the edges. And I couldn't possibly compare the texture to a marshnmallow -- more like a pound cake, but maybe that was due to the falling. The syrup was great (I reduced a cup of OJ to a 1/2 cup to enhance the flavor) and I will try this recipe again, but I'd definitely bake it for HALF the time called for in this recipe. Might be more attractive to serve to guests if it were prepared in individual ramekins, too.

I wasn't sure how this would turn out but I'm glad I gave it a go! It doesn't taste like marshmallows but the texture is soft. The pudding part took a full 60mins to bake and I made the sauce using water. I thought there was going to be too much sauce but within a matter of seconds it had all soaked deep into the pudding. Next time I will try the orange juice as the pudding didn't have a lot of flavour with just the water. You could really adapt this recipe to use any kind of flavour you like.

This is delicious, especially the sauce on top. I will probably make it again within the next week.

Excellent recipe, have tried it a number of times and it's a winner every time!!!!

This is the exact recipe that my brother-in-law made for me when my husband and I were visiting in Australia. This is most definitely a cake and not a "pudding" like we Americans think of when we hear the word. (And I'm not sure where "marshmallow" came from?) This cake was so moist and rich. Absolutely give this recipe a try! Thanks for posting, Hynch.

The taste of this dessert was top-notch, but the actual baking process was strange. Is the milk supposed to curdle, both in the batter and in the topping? If not, how do you prevent this?

I'd heard of this pudding from S. African friends so thought I'd give it a try. I used my usual substitute for cake flour: reduce all-purpose by 2 T. per cup, add an equivalent amount of corn starch. I did find the vinegar curdled the milk mixture while heating, in future I'd either add it when it comes off the stove or use buttermilk. No apricot jelly so I used raspberry. My pudding tested done after 35 minutes, probably because I used a slightly bigger dish than specified. I used orange juice in the sauce, it curdled straight away although I don't think that matters. After soaking,the pudding was slightly drier in the middle. If I made this again I would like to do what a previous reviewer suggests and pour some of the sauce mixture over the pudding half way through baking. My family liked the pudding warm, I prefer it cool. Thx for an interesting recipe.

Awesome.... Exactly like back home in SA

This recipe needs some changes. First I used a larger 1.5 quart baking dish. Secondly, probably because of the larger dish, it only needed 35 mintues to cook the cake. Third, the amount of sauce can be halved. It will not all fit in the pan as you pour it over the cake. Tasted fine, but I felt the recipe was not accurate.

So delicious - tastes like toffee bread pudding! I even cut the butter in half for the cream and it was still rich and flavorful!

Was served Malva pudding at Mala Mala in South Africa. I've made it several times and it is always enjoyed by family and friends.

Made it according to the instructions but I only used 1/2 cup of sugar. It turned out perfect. Thank you