Traditional Gluten-Free Christmas Pudding
Nothing beats a homemade Traditional Gluten-Free Christmas Pudding. It simply does not compare to anything you can buy in the shops. This light and fluffy pudding is bursting with plump luscious brandy sodden fruit and is rich with nuts and spices.
Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 420kcal
Ingredients
Day One
- 115 g sultanas
- 115 g raisins
- 70 g dried figs diced
- 50 g dried unsweetened cranberries
- 25 g whole almonds roughly chopped
- 1 carrot peeled and grated
- 1 apple peeled and grated
- 1 orange zest and juice
- 80 ml brandy
Day Two
- 2 eggs medium*
- 80 g shredded suet for gluten-free suet see notes below
- 1 tablespoon black treacle
- 120 g dark muscovado sugar
- 80 g gluten-free breadcrumbs
- 70 g gluten-free flour see notes
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground mixed spice see notes
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Toss all of the ingredients from Day One together in a large mixing bowl then cover the bowl and leave in a corner of the kitchen to marinate overnight.
- Add all the ingredients from Day Two to the marinated fruits from Day One. Stir everything together thoroughly.
- Butter a 1.1lt pudding basin then fill with the pudding mixture.
- Make a lid for the basin by taking a large piece of baking parchment and a large piece of aluminium foil. Lie the foil on top and make a fold in the centre of both pieces which will allow room for the steam to rise. Place these over the top of the pudding basin, with the foil on top, securing tightly with bakers twine underneath the lip of the pudding basin. Trim off any excess parchment and foil, you don't want them to hanging too low as otherwise they will soak up the water during the steam.
- Place a steaming rack (or a folded up tea towel) into a large lidded cooking pot, deep enough to cover the pudding. Then place the pudding on top of the rack.
- Fill the pot up with boiling water until halfway up the pudding basin. The water should not touch the parchment / foil otherwise they will soak it up and the pudding will go soggy. Place the lid on the pot and bring the heat to a simmer.
- Steam for three and a half hours, checking the water level occasionally and topping up if necessary.
- Remove the pudding from the cooking pot then re-make the lid for the pudding basin with fresh baking parchment and aluminium foil. Store in a cool dark place until Christmas Day.
- On Christmas Day the pudding will need to be steamed again in the large cooking pot for re-heating before serving. However your pudding will only need two and half hours this time.
- Remove the pudding basin from the cooking pot and remove the parchment / foil lid. Turn your pudding carefully out onto a plate and serve with brandy butter, custard, cream or ice-cream to accompany it.
Video
Notes
Dried Fruit - I think the sultanas are necessary but you can switch out the raisins for currants and the figs and dried cranberries to whichever dried fruits you enjoy.
Almonds - these are optional if you need to make a nut-free pudding or you can substitute for pecans or walnuts.
Apple - I like to use Bramley apple but Granny Smiths are fine too.
Suet - Commercial suet is coated in wheat flour. I haven't found gluten-free commercial suet that I like but you can order fresh suet from the butcher. If it comes in a block then you can grate it with gluten-free flour to create suet pellets which will evenly distribute throughout the pudding. Or you can substitute with either lard or coconut butter. If you do, then freeze the fat before grating into the pudding for even distribution.
Dark Brown Muscovado Sugar - can be substituted for any dark brown sugar. Sift the sugar before you use it - muscovado sugar can be a bit clumpy
Breadcrumbs - you can use any gluten-free breadcrumbs.
Gluten-Free Flour - I use Doves Farm Gluten-Free Plain White Flour.
Ground Mixed Spice - I urge you to make your own mixed spice which tastes so much better than shop bought. This recipe is also ideal if you can't find it in your local grocery store British Mixed Spice Recipe.
Making ahead - You can make your Christmas Pudding at least 3 months in advance if you so wish. It keeps very well in a cool dark place.
Re-heating - Christmas Pudding is not very nice eaten cold, it needs re-heating.
Please try not to microwave your full Christmas Pudding. It will make the pudding tough and heavy. Although you can re-heat portions of leftover Christmas Pudding in the microwave on Boxing Day.
Ingredient measurements
- Please note when you see ‘grams’ listed as opposed to ‘millilitres,’ or any other term of measurement, that is not incorrect. I weigh all of my ingredients, including liquids, for accuracy.
- US customary measurements for the ingredients provided are based on a conversion calculator. This recipe was tested with metric measurements and I recommend using a digital scale to weigh ingredients for the most accurate results. READ MORE >>> Why you should always weigh vs measuring with cups
Nutrition information
Please note that the nutrition information provided below is an estimate based on an online nutrition calculator. It will vary based on the specific ingredients you use. Please seek a professional nutritionist’s advice for further clarification.Nutrition
Calories: 420kcal | Carbohydrates: 70g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Cholesterol: 48mg | Sodium: 106mg | Potassium: 509mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 38g | Vitamin A: 1382IU | Vitamin C: 12mg | Calcium: 104mg | Iron: 2mg