Gluten and Dairy Free Christmas Pudding

serves / makes 6
20 prep time
240 mins cooking time

Description

My mum has always cooked us an amazing Christmas dinner for the last 33 years of my life – breaking with tradition this year I’m going to cook the family Christmas dinner – so the pressure is on! One of the first things I decided to think about was how to make a gluten and dairy free Christmas pudding. This simple recipe can be prepared in advance and stored for up to 3 months.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

100g sultanas
50g dried cherries
1 lemon, juiced and zested
1 orange, juiced and zested
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
50ml brandy
90g brown sugar
1 granny smith apple, peeled and grated
1 carrot, peeled and grated
125g ground almonds
25g cornflor
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 egg
25ml vegetable oil
1 tablespoon treacle

Method

Place the sultanas, cherries, lemon zest and juice, orange zest and juice, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves and brandy in large bowl
Cover and leave to soak for 24 hours
Stir in the brown sugar, grated apple and grated carrot
Stir in the egg, oil and treacle
Mix in the ground almonds, cornflour and baking powder
Grease a 1 litre pudding basin and line the bottom with a disc of grease proof paper
Pour in the pudding mixture
Cover the top with grease proof paper and kitchen foil
Tie securely with string
Place the pudding in a large saucepan
Gently pour in boiling water until it comes half way up the pudding basin
Cover with a lid and steam on a low heat for 4 hours – periodically checking if the water needs topped up
Leave to cool and store in a cool dark place for up to three months
When you wish to serve you can either steam for another 2 hours or remove the foil and microwave for 4 minutes
Invert onto a serving platter where you can flame the pudding by heating ip a ladle of brandy, pouring over the pudding and then lighting
Serve with dairy free custard or cream