Waitrose is expecting a scramble in the aisles after sending more of its Hidden Orange Christmas Pudding out to stores.

The Heston Blumenthal creation has proved such a monster hit that it quickly sold out and has since been fetching exorbitant prices on eBay.

Enterpreneurial shoppers have posted dozens of the puddings on the site, with many selling for about £50 in the last two days, although two have fetched £1,000 and many others have sold for hundreds of pounds. On Thursday, there were 178 puddings on the internet sale site.

“We’ve made as many as we can, but cannot produce any more because the candied orange takes weeks to candy,” said a Waitrose spokeswoman.

The surprise Christmas hit retails at £13.99 each and contains a whole orange inside, which is revealed when the pudding is cut open.

The chain has sold “tens of thousands”, according to the spokeswoman, who added: “A few hundred have been sent out to stores. We expect them to sell out straight away – they certainly won’t last until Christmas.”

Enterprising home bakers are also offering a recipe for the orange puddings on eBay for 99p.

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