Orange adds a wonderful citrusy note to this orange Christmas pudding. Brimful of blanched almonds, chopped prunes, and mixed dried fruit.
This orange Christmas pudding (opens in new tab) recipe makes two gluten-free puds, each of which serves eight. We recommend keeping one for Christmas day and giving one to a friend or neighbour. Stir-Up Sunday (last Sunday in November) is the perfect time to prepare this pudding, but it can be made up to three months in advance and wrapped tightly in the fridge. This pud is flavoured with both sherry and whiskey for a rich boozy taste.
Ingredients
1.5 oranges
90g carrot, grated
150g gluten-free bread
60g gluten-free self-raising flour
175g dark muscovado sugar
1tbsp mixed spice
500g dried mixed fruit
250g ready-to-eat prunes, chopped
150g chilled butter, grated
60g blanched almonds, chopped
3 eggs
150ml cider
5tbsp whisky
3tbsp sherry
You will need
2 x 1ltr greased and base-lined pudding basins
WEIGHT CONVERTER
grams
to
cups
Method
Put the whole orange in a pan of cold water, cover and bring to the boil. Simmer for 40 mins until very soft. Drain and allow to cool for a few minutes.
Meanwhile, break the gluten-free bread into a processor and blitz to turn into breadcrumbs then tip the crumbs into a large bowl.
Quarter the softened orange, remove any seeds and blitz in a processor to finely chop. Tip into the bowl with the breadcrumbs.
Add the gluten-free flour, sugar, mixed spice, dried mixed fruit, prunes, butter and chopped almonds.
Combine the eggs in a jug with the whisky and sherry and mix together with a fork. Pour into the bowl and mix everything together.
Slice the remaining half an orange and arrange slices at the base of each pudding basin. Divide the mixture between the basins and smooth over. Cover with a double sheet of pleated baking paper and foil and secure with string.
Cook in a steamer for six hours, checking and topping up with boiling water every 30 mins or as needed.
Top tips for making this orange Christmas pudding...
You could also use two large lemons in place of the oranges.
Rosie Hopegood is a former professional chef turned journalist with a passion for veggie food. She spent several years working as a chef aboard superyachts, catering for the culinary demands of the very rich and sometimes famous. She also worked as a private chef in the Swiss Alps, the Scottish Highlands, and the Balearic Islands. Later, she spent five years looking after the food pages at Reach Plc’s magazines. Rosie lives in New York and writes for Al Jazeera, Sunday Telegraph, and The Guardian.
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