Mini Vegan & Gluten Free Christmas Puddings

Christmas pudding: the ultimate festive luxury for some, a muddled mash-up of spiced fruit. Love it, or hate it, we’re confident we can all agree that nothing says ‘Christmas’ quite like an up-side down, flame engulfed, fruit pudding. And this pyrotechnic display is just the start of the excitement – enter numerous dollops of brandy butter, lashings of cream and an entire tub of ice-cream. If you haven’t indulged in this rich alcohol-soaked tradition and subsequently fallen into a deep, highly satisfying food comma you simply haven’t ‘done’ Christmas.

Luckily, Niki (@RebelRecipes) is here to proudly lead the way for tricky-tummies everywhere. Her ingenious raw, vegan and gluten free mini Christmas puds, are also lighter than the original but just as jam-packed with juicy fruits and aromatic spices. Plus, each individual little pud is finished with a generous drizzling of coconut cream – what more could we ask for? Now you really can have your Christmas pud and eat it. So, shall we get mixing?

 

For the pudding:
- 15g goji berries
- 150g dried dates
- 40g cranberries
- 50g apricots
- 50g figs
- 40g raisins
- 50g almonds
- 2 tablespoons chia seeds
- 10g yellow raisins
- 2 tablespoons flaxseeds
- 3 tablespoons sunflower seeds
- 1 teaspoon Cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon cardamom
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- Juice ½ orange
- 2 tablespoons ginger, grated
- 2 tablespoons yellow raisins
- 2 tablespoons cashew nuts
- A pinch of sea salt

For the coconut cream:
- 4 tablespoons Desiccated Coconut
- ½ teaspoon vanilla powder
- A little water

To top:
- Pomegranate seeds
- Star anise

Let’s get started!

1. Begin by soaking your dried fruit in water for 2-3 hours, or until soft. Squeeze any excess liquid from the fruit then toss into a food processor and whizz for a few seconds.
2. Remove the dried fruit mix from your food processor and throw in the almonds and pulse until you’re left with a fine crumb. Add all the remaining dry mix and pulse until well combined.
3. Next, throw in the grated ginger, soaked fruit, orange juice, additional raisins, cashews and salt, then mix thoroughly.
4. Finally grease around four small ramekins (baking dishes) with coconut oil then spoon in your mixture. Press down firmly to ensure that all-important mound, then cover with cling film and pop in the fridge to harden for 2-3 hours.
5. To make the coconut cream, simply blitz all three coconut cream ingredients in a food processor.
6. When your puds are sufficiently hard, run a knife around the outside of the pots then turn them upside down. Finally, top with coconut cream and pomegranates.