Gold Top Bread And Butter Pudding

1. Lightly grease a 1.5 litre shallow oven proof baking dish with a
little of the butter. Use the rest of the butter to spread on the
slices of bread. Cut them in half, diagonally to make triangles.
2. Mix the dried fruit and spice together and sprinkle into the
bottom of the baking dish. Arrange the overlapping slices of bread
on the top.
3. Beat together the eggs, egg yolk, milk, sugar and vanilla extract.
Carefully pour over the bread and leave to soak for at least
30 minutes (this can be for longer if placed covered in the
refrigerator).
4. Preheat the oven to 150°C/Fan 130°F/ gas mark 3. Half fill a
roasting tin with boiling water and place the pudding in it. Put
in the oven for 30 – 40 minutes to cook (it is better to cook
it at a lower temperature for longer, than rush it at a hotter
temperature). It should still be slightly moist but not at all runny in
the centre.
5. Meanwhile put the apricot jam in a saucepan with a squeeze of
lemon juice and a tablespoon of water. Bring to the boil and push
through a sieve.
6. When the pudding is ready and slightly cooled carefully brush or
spoon the warm apricot jam over the surface. Serve warm or cold