Recipe: Could this be the best Christmas pudding ever?

VEGAN CHRISTMAS PUDDING

The most successful vegan desserts are the ones where you can’t tell the difference from non-vegan.

This luxurious pudding is my favourite pudding recipe, adjusted slightly to suit all diets. It’s delicious and fruity and light. I baked in a Bain Marie in the oven and used foil individual pudding moulds and covered them with tinfoil — a small loaf tin will work equally well. Just ensure it is sealed well with foil, and perhaps line with cling film.

Ingredients

Zest & juice of half an orange

Zest & juice of half a lemon

72 gr Sultanas

72 gr Raisins

72gr Bread crumbs

108 gr Chopped Dates (if these are very dry soak in boiling water for half an hour then drain off the water)

20 gr Chopped glace cherries

80ml Brandy

80ml Jamaican or spiced rum

145 gr Dark brown sugar

2 Flax eggs – that’s 2 tbsp. ground flax soaked in 6 tbsp water for 10 minutes

100gr Peeled grated cooking apple

50gr grated carrot

75gr Dairy free butter

60 gr Self-rising flour

¼ tsp. freshly nutmeg ¼ tsp mixed spice

15gr Crystallized ginger finely diced

Method:

• Soak the sultanas, raisins, grated apple, carrot, and cherries with the brandy, rum, fruit juices and fruit zest overnight.
• When ready to finish preheat the oven to 150 C Sift together the flour and spices.
• Roughly chop the dates.
• Put the dates, ginger and the dairy-free margarine and sugar into a food processor and whizz until smooth-ish, add the flax egg and whizz again, then scrape into a large mixing bowl Add in the soaked fruit, breadcrumbs, sifted flour.
• Stir everything together, then spoon into your lightly oiled pudding basin.
• Cover tightly with more heavy duty tin foil ensuring a good seal.
• Place into a large deep roasting tin, then fill the pan with enough boiling water from the kettle to come halfway up the sides of the moulds.
• Place in the oven and cook for 1 ½ to 2 hours.
• Do check the water level after about 40 min and top up if necessary.
• Carefully check one after 1 ½ hrs and if cooked through remove all the moulds from the tray and leave to cool.
• Serve the pudding hot – they are easy to reheat by just de moulding and giving 50 to 60 seconds in the microwave.
• Serve with vegan vanilla custard.

Vegan Vanilla Custard

Ingredients

½ ltr plant based milk (or ½ and ½ plant based milk and cream )

80 gr caster sugar

25gr corn flour

4tsp vanilla essence

Tiny pinch tumeric – for colour only (optional)

Tbsp of brandy (optional)

Method:

• Whisk all the ingredients together.
• Pour whisked liquid into a heavy based pot and heat for 5-10 minutes on high to medium heat until the starch reacts with the heat and starts to thicken.
• Stir constantly so that it doesn’t burn (happens easily). This custard is delicious either hot or cold.

The Echo will print a special WoW! Christmas Food Special on November 29 - be sure to pick up a copy.