This traditional Vegan British Eve's Pudding, or Vegan Apple Pudding, is one of my family's favourite. The apples are sweet & tangy with a pleasant bite while the sponge has delicious sweet cinnamon and lemon notes. So delicious served with vegan hot custard, ice-cream, pouring cream, whipped cream or yoghurt for the ultimate dessert that is great for everyday comfort food puddings as well as for dinner party desserts.Serving more people? Simply double the ingredients for a larger pudding with more delicious portions or a thicker sponge layer, we have often doubled the recipe with great success!
baking dish or pie dish big enough for 4 servings. Roughly about 8 x 8 or 8 x 6 inch.
non-stick saucepan for stewing apples
zester for zesting lemon peel
Ingredients
Sponge topping:
115gramsself-raising flour[sieved, or replace with plain, all-purpose flour plus an extra teaspoon of baking powder, and a few pinches of salt]
1teaspoonbaking powder
65gramssoft brown sugar[or use dark brown, caster or granulated sugar]
115millilitreswater
1teaspooncinnamon powder
3tablespoonsvegetable oil[any neutral flavoured oil is fine such as rapeseed, sunflower]
2teaspoonslemon zest[the zest of 1 small lemon or ½ a large lemon, can replace with orange zest]
Apple filling:
5mediumapples [Ordinary eating or dessert apples, cored and chopped into chunks. I don't peel the apples unless there is a blemish as I prefer to keep the skin on for the extra nutrition, but if preferred peel the apples]
3teaspoonsoft brown sugar[or an alternative sugar]
2teaspoonlemon juice[or fresh orange juice]
1-4tablespoonwater[exact quantity depends on your apples and how much juice they release during stewing]
To serve, optional:
vegan custard, home-made or shop-bought*** we have included our step-by-step custard recipe in the FAQ section above***
Instructions
Preheat oven to 160 Fan,180 C, 350 Fahrenheit, Gas 4.
Grease the baking dish with a little margarine or oil.
Stew the apples:
Tip the chopped apples into the saucepan along with 2 tablespoons of the water, lemon juice, and sugar.Over a medium heat, stew the apples until fork soft but still firm.Stir frequently and if too dry add another 1-2 tablespoons of water.After about 10-15 minutes the apples should be ready. Add the apples to the greased dish.
5 medium apples, 3 teaspoon soft brown sugar, 2 teaspoon lemon juice, 1-4 tablespoon water
Prepare the sponge topping:
When the apples are nearly finished stewing prepare the sponge.Add the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, sugar and lemon zest to a mixing bowl and stir well.
Next pour in the water and oil and mix until its a smooth batter.
Pour and spread the cake batter evenly over the apples.
Place on the middle rack of the oven.Bake for 25-40 minutes until golden. (Exact time will depend on your oven, check the pudding after 25 minutes). Fan ovens tend to cook faster.A skewer inserted into the sponge comes out clean-ish. Its a pudding so no need to be completely dry inside.
Serve hot straight from the oven with hot custard or an alternative such as plant-based ice-cream, pouring cream, whipped cream, or a pain or vanilla vegan yogurt. We often like a simple drizzle of plant-based milk over a serving of Eve's pudding if there is no other options available!
vegan custard, home-made or shop-bought
Notes
Nutritional information is provided for guidance only and is not a strict calculation as ingredients vary.
Nutrition data does not include the vegan custard accompaniment.
For a larger Eve's pudding or more servings simply double the ingredients and use a larger oven dish. (I doubled the recipe and used a larger baking dish and the pudding was ready in just over 30 minutes with a fan oven, so times will depend on your oven. Check the pudding after 25-30 minutes).
Leftover Eve's pudding can be stored in the fridge, in a covered container, for up to 3-4 days.
Or frozen for up to 2-3 months, well wrapped.
Leftovers are really tasty chilled for breakfast. Or take a slice for a pack lunch or picnic. Eve's pudding slices up really well when chilled and holds its form.
Serve Eve's pudding with vegan cream, custard, yogurt or ice-cream. Or enjoy on its own. It is traditionally served with hot custard.
For an easy vegan hot custard recipe check out the FAQ section above for a step-by-step method.
Not too keen on apples? Or have other fruit that needs using up? Sub the apples for pears, peaches, nectarines, or plums. Or a combination. Eve's pudding is an ideal way to use up reduced sticker punnets of fruit or whenever you happen to have a surplus of fruit.
For more useful information, including how to prepare the apples ahead of time, and how to prepare a gluten-free Eve's pudding do check out our recipe notes and FAQ section above this recipe.