Perhaps you first heard of it in Dickens'"A Christmas Carol" or in the song "We wish you a Merry Christmas." But who among you has even seen, let alone tasted a Figgy Pudding?
Years ago, I was as fascinated as you, so my good friend, Bill, and I made it our mission to research and create the ultimate Figgy Pudding. As it turns out, Figgy Pudding is a traditional English dessert, originating in the 16th century. Now, the English are famous for calling everything a "pudding", but this "pudding" is really a moist cake with dried figs, spices and just enough liqueur to make it festive.
We found a lot of different recipes. Some were baked. Some were steamed. Some had raisins, dates AND figs. Some only got figgy with it.
We decided a combination of figs, dates and raisins was best. We also threw in some traditional toasted almonds and some very American pecans. We loved the steamed version because it came out so much moister than the others.
Now, I was not vegan when we created our original All American Figgy Pudding, so I spent another day in my kitchen this week experimenting with vegan versions. I tried it with both chia seeds and with egg replacer and decided that it really didn't make a difference, so I went with the egg replacer as it is a bit easier to use and is more likely to be in every vegan's pantry.
If you do not have a pudding mold, you can use really any metal mold or bowl and just seal the top with foil.
So, four hundred years in the making, I present to you: the All American Vegan Figgy Pudding with Orangey Sauce:
All American Vegan Figgy Pudding
½ cup chopped dried figs
¼ cup orange liqueur or orange juice
½ cup softened vegan buttery spread
½ cup dark brown sugar or coconut sugar
½ cup all purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon white pepper
½ cup graham cracker crumbs
½ cup unsweetened almond or soy milk
3 teaspoons powdered egg replacer
4 tablespoons warm water
¼ cup chopped dates
¼ white raisins
¼ cup blanched, chopped, toasted almonds
¼ cup chopped pecans
1 tablespoon orange marmalade
- Soak figs in liqueur or orange juice overnight.
- Put a rack in a deep pot with 1" of water at the bottom. I used a pasta pot with a lift out strainer and lid.
- Beat buttery spread and brown sugar until light and fluffy.
- Mix egg replacer with the warm water until just combined.
- In another bowl combine flour, salt, soda, nutmeg, cinnamon and pepper. Add to buttery spread mixture and beat well. Add marmalade. Add figs with liqueur, graham cracker crumbs, egg replacer mixture, milk, dates, raisins, almonds and pecans and mix well.
- Pour batter into well greased pudding mold and put inside your deep pot with 1" of boiling water at the bottom. Steam, covered, over medium heat, for 1 ½ hours or until a cake tester comes out clean. Check the water level every so often so that it does not run out. Add more boiling water as needed.
- Let pudding cool for 15 minutes then unmold onto a pretty platter. It can be served warm after another 15 minutes has passed. Enjoy with Orangey Sauce.
Orangey Sauce
8 oz vegan cream cheese
1/3 cup orange marmalade
2 teaspoons orange zest
2 ½ cups powdered sugar
- In a food processor blend marmalade for 2 minutes until creamy and light.
- Add vegan cream cheese and mix until well combined.
- Add sugar a little at a time and blend until smooth.
- Pulse in zest.
Store in the refrigerator until ready to use.
*Note: This recipe make a lot of orangey sauce. You can half it if you want or save any leftovers to spread on toast, slather on muffins or dip graham crackers into.
Alyssa Boyle aka "The Cavewoman," is the owner of Cavewoman Bars and enjoys gathering fruits and veggies and turning them into mouth-watering creations with as little processing as possible. She took this photo of her pudding in her dining room. You can find her at www.cavewomanbars.com and on Twitter and Facebook. Sign up for her Newsletter and be the first to receive the latest information, along with valuable coupons.
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