The Healthy Chef – Teresa Cutter

Christmas isn’t Christmas without a traditional pudding.  I love the fragrant aroma of cinnamon, vanilla, orange and nutmeg infused into plump sun-dried fruits then finished off with a home made proper egg custard poured over the top.  This is a recipe I designed especially for YOU !  It features in the December issue of Women’s Fitness Magazine  and  it needed to fit into the healthy chef philosophy and be Purely Delicious !

For those who prefer a more traditional style of baked pudding, keep reading below – all bases are pretty much covered here.  Please keep an eye out for this Friday’s post on my purely delicious baked fruit cake.

WHAT’S GOOD ABOUT THEM:
My Christmas puddings only take 5 minutes to make.  What I love about them is that they’re so easy to make and you feel great after eating it, as it won’t bloat you out like traditional versions and they are gluten free too!. The dried fruit adds  sweetness and moisture, so you don’t need to add extra cane sugar or added fats like most traditional puddings. Almond meal adds protein, vitamin E + the good heart healthy mono-unsaturated oils which are anit-inflammatory to the body. They can be eaten warm topped with proper vanilla bean custard. or cold served with my lush mango coconut custard (see recipe below).

225g fresh pitted dates – approx 10 – 15  dates depending on their size
zest from 1 orange
250g organic dried apricots, chopped
150 g (1 ½ cups) almond meal / ground almonds
1  teaspoon vanilla bean paste or extract
1 tsp ground cinnamon
¼  tsp ground nutmeg
¼ tsp ground ginger
80 g white chocolate, melted for decoration – optional (please see other great topping ideas below)

Combine dates, orange zest, apricots, vanilla, ground almonds, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger in a food processor.
Process until mixture is combined and looks like fine crumbs.
Spoon mixture into a large bowl and add 1 – 2 tablespoons orange juice then mix again. Your pudding mix should come together in the hands when lightly squeezed.
Divide puddings into 6 small puddings. The best way to do this is to line the base of your desired mould with glad wrap and press the pudding mixture into it firmly.
Invert the pudding and remove the glad wrap. Repeat until all the puddings are formed.
Melt white chocolate in a small bowl that is set over a simmering pot of water.
Spoon a little white chocolate over the tops of the puddings if using and garnish. You can use goji berries, fresh cherries or anything you fancy. Alternatively omit the topping if you wish.
Arrange onto a serving plate and set aside until needed.
Store in the fridge for upto 2 weeks.
I love to make double the mix so I have extra for second helpings.
Serve puddings with cold mango coconut custard or  warm with proper vanilla bean custard.

PLEASE NOTE: YOU DO NOT NEED TO BAKE THESES PUDDINGS !

Nutrition  per serve

Makes 6 puddings
Protein: 7.6 g
Carbs: 36 g
Total Fat: 16 g
Saturated: 2 g
Fiber: 7.8 g
Calories: 318
Kilojoules: 1330

Mango Coconut Custard
1 mango, chopped
1/2 cup coconut milk
Juice from ½ orange

Combine all the ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth.
Serve chilled along side puddings.

FOR A PROPER EGG CUSTARD RECIPE – click here

OTHER SERVING SUGGESTIONS:
1 Garnish with fresh red cherries or raspberries
2 Top with thick yoghurt in place of custard
3 Serve with sour cherry compote or smashed raspberries
4 for nut free alternatives please see my post this Friday on fruit cake – and read below.

CHRISTMAS PUDDING (baked traditional version – PURELY DELICIOUS + HEALTHY)

MAKES 12
PREP 20mins
COOK 1hr 15mins
GLUTEN FREE

450g pitted dates
1 whole orange, chopped – YES WHOLE including skin.
1  1/2 cups (375ml)  water
1 ½ cups (250g) raisins
1 2/3 cups (250g) organic dried apricots, chopped
3 cups (300g) almond meal (see notes)
1 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground nutmeg
¼ tsp ground ginger
2 eggs, lightly beaten

Preheat oven to 180C fan or 200C. Grease 10 x ½ cup dariole moulds.
Combine dates, orange and juice into a saucepan and bring to boil.
Simmer for 15-20 mins until all liquid has evaporated and dates and orange are soft. Set aside to cool.
Place date and orange mixture into a Vitamix or food processor and process until a paste forms.
Transfer to a large bowl. Add sultanas, apricots, almond meal, spices, eggs and mix well. Add another egg if needed.
Divide between prepared pudding / dariole moulds.
Place into a deep baking dish.
Pour enough hot water to come half way up sides of pudding bowls.
Cover with a layer of each baking paper and foil, pressing around edges of pan to completely seal.
Bake for 1 hr 15 mins.
Invert puddings onto serving plates.
Serve with proper custard and enjoy.

NUTRITION PER PUDDING.

Protein: 8 g
Total fat: 15 g
Saturated: 1.3 g
Carbs: 38 g
Sugars: 36.6 g
Calories: 314
kilojoules: 1320
Fiber: 7 g

1 cup wholemeal spelt flour can be used in place of the almond meal in this recipe. Please add additional 1/4 cup macadamia nut oil + 1 teaspoon baking powder if doing so.

Print

Share This

Tweet