This beautifully spiced spelt Christmas pudding is sure to impress your guests with its rich, full-bodied flavour, plump, juicy fruit, and comforting festive spices. Served warm with a zesty lemon sauce, it’s the perfect indulgent yet wholesome treat to crown your Christmas celebration. A true holiday delight!
what you need
Pudding:
- 3 large eggs
- ½ cup molasses
- 1 ¼ cups rapadura or coconut sugar
- 140 g beef tallow, melted
- ½ cup brewed coffee (not instant)
- ½ tsp baking soda
- 3 cups white spelt flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp cloves
- ½ tsp ground nutmeg
- 2 cups raisins or sultanas
- ¾ cup dried cherries
- ½ cup prunes, chopped
- ½ cup dried cranberries
- ½ cup chopped almonds
Sauce:
- 1 cup rapadura or coconut sugar
- 2 Tbs spelt flour
- 2 Tbs butter
- 2 cups boiling water
- 2 Tbs lemon juice
- 1 tsp lemon zest
what to do
You can prepare your pudding 2 to 3 weeks in advance and store it in the refrigerator.
- Grease a plum pudding pan of about 2.5 litres. Alternatively, you can use a 2.5 litre ceramic bowl.
- Fill a large roasting pan with water halfway up, put a rack at the bottom then place the roasting pan across 2 burners of the stove, cover and bring the water to a boil and then turn off the heat. The pudding will steam in the roasting pan.
- In a large bowl or Thermomix, beat the eggs, molasses and sugar until creamy.
- Add melted tallow, coffee and baking soda. Mix gently with a whisk or on a low Thermomix setting and let stand for 15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt and spices. Once the dry ingredients are well mixed, add the raisins, dried fruits and almonds and stir again, using a wooden spoon, so that all the ingredients are evenly distributed in the flour.
- Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix well until completely combined.
- Press the dough evenly into the mould making sure to only fill it to ¾ full to allow for it to rise. If it doesn’t fit into the mould, consider using two moulds to make two slightly smaller puddings.
- Cover the mould with a lid or aluminium foil to create a seal.
- Bring the water back to boiling in the roasting pan. As soon as it comes to a boil, place the pudding pan in it. Water must reach 2/3 of the height of the mould; adjust as needed by adding or removing water. Cover, again bring to a boil then simmer over low heat. During cooking, check the water level and adjust as needed.
- Depending on the size of the pudding, the cooking time may vary from 1 to 3 hours. If you have divided the pudding into 2 moulds, check after 1 hour, 30 mins or after 2 hours if using a single pudding pan. The pudding will be ready when a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean. Be careful not to overcook
- Remove the lid and allow to cool.
- When cool, gently remove from mould using a butter knife to loosen. Place in a container and keep in fridge for up to 3 weeks.
- To serve, gently heat using the same method as per cooking and serve with sauce.
ACCOMPANYING SAUCE:
- In a small saucepan, combine sugar, butter and flour.
- Add boiling water and whisk or blend in Thermomix or electric mixer.
- Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly with a whisk until thickened. Then add the lemon juice, zest and nutmeg. Taste and adjust, if needed.
- If you want a slightly thicker sauce, simply add 15 ml (1 tablespoon) of organic cornstarch (blended in the same amount of water). Bring gently to a boil, stirring constantly, until thickened.
- Serve this hot sauce on the pudding.
