You know a pudding’s earned its stripes when a Springbok wears its name. Jan Ellis — loose forward, legend, most-capped Bok of his era — apparently had one soft spot off the field: this pudding. Simple, unpretentious, and criminally good. The man clearly knew what mattered.
Every great South African pudding seems to carry a story, and this one belongs to a Springbok legend. Jan Ellis, the red-haired loose forward who racked up 38 test caps for South Africa between 1965 and 1976 — a record at the time — was as famous for his relentless work rate on the field as he was, apparently, for his sweet tooth off it. Legend has it this syrup-soaked sponge was his favourite pudding, and decades later it still carries his name.
Ellis wasn’t your typical rugby star. Born in Gobabis and known affectionately as the “Boer from Gobabis,” he was one of the most outstanding loose forwards of his era, famed for his blistering pace and fearless ball-carrying. Off the pitch he was famously private, but his legacy on it was undeniable — a true Springbok great whose name still means something to South African rugby fans today.
Here’s the trick: you bake a humble little sponge — nothing fancy, just flour, eggs, a spoon of apricot jam for good measure — and the moment it comes out of the oven, you flood it. A butter-cream-sugar syrup, boiling hot, poured straight over a hot cake. Physics does the rest. The sponge drinks it in, top to bottom, until every forkful is dense, damp, and dripping with that syrup you’ll want to lick off the plate.
Which brings us to the pudding itself — and honestly, the man had good taste. This is comfort food at its most unpretentious: a soft, humble sponge batter, baked until golden, then drenched in a hot butter-cream syrup the moment it comes out of the oven. It soaks in top to bottom, turning every forkful dense, sticky and impossibly moreish. Serve it warm with custard and you’ll understand exactly why a legend loved it.
Ingredients
- 5ml bicarbonate of soda
- 125ml milk
- 375ml flour
- 125ml sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 30ml apricot jam
- 25ml soft margarine
- 1ml salt
- 250ml water for the sauce
- 250ml cream for the sauce
- 250ml butter for the sauce
- 250ml sugar for the sauce
- 5ml vanilla essence
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180°C. Dissolve the bicarb in the milk, then mix with the remaining pudding ingredients until smooth. Pour into a buttered baking dish and bake for 30–40 minutes, until golden and a skewer comes out clean.
- While it bakes, bring all the sauce ingredients to the boil in a saucepan. Pour the hot syrup over the pudding as soon as it’s out of the oven. Serve warm with custard.
How to Make Jan Ellis Pudding: A Classic South African Dessert
Ingredients
- 5ml bicarbonate of soda
- 125ml milk
- 375ml flour
- 125ml sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 30ml apricot jam
- 25ml soft margarine
- 1ml salt
- 250ml water for the sauce
- 250ml cream for the sauce
- 250ml butter for the sauce
- 250ml sugar for the sauce
- 5ml vanilla essence
Instructions
steps
- 1. Preheat the oven: Preheat your oven to 180°C. Butter a baking dish and set it aside.
- Dissolve the bicarb: Dissolve the 5 milliliters bicarbonate of soda in the 125 milliliters milk and set aside briefly.
- Mix the batter: In a large bowl, mix together the 375 milliliters flour, 125 milliliters sugar, 2 large eggs, 30 milliliters apricot jam, 25 milliliters soft margarine, and 1 milliliters salt until well combined.
- Bring it together: Add the milk and bicarb mixture to the batter and mix until smooth.
- Bake: Pour the batter into the buttered baking dish and bake until golden and a skewer comes out clean.
- Make the syrup: While the pudding bakes, place the 250 milliliters water (for the sauce), 250 milliliters cream (for the sauce), 250 milliliters butter (for the sauce), 250 milliliters sugar (for the sauce), and 5 milliliters vanilla essence in a small saucepan over medium heat and bring to the boil.
- Soak and serve: As soon as the pudding comes out of the oven, pour the hot syrup all over it — it should soak in and pool at the edges. Serve warm with custard.
Notes
Pour the syrup over the pudding while both are still hot — this is the secret to getting that deep soak-through texture. Leftovers (if you have any) reheat beautifully in the microwave, syrup and all.