Steamed puddings are budget-friendly, can provide valuable energy during the chillier months, and are just so comforting when enjoyed with hot custard snuggling up on the sofa watching your favourite soap or a good movie.
Add the fruit jam to the bottom of the pudding basin.
100 gram fruit jam
Cut a circular piece of parchment paper just slightly larger that the top of your pudding basin, and a circular piece of kitchen foil that overlaps 1-2 inches over the basin.[some pudding bowls such as plastic ones may have a clip top lid so if its suitable for cooking use the lid instead of the parchment and foil]
Pour a few cups of water into the slow cooker and switch to the high setting, pop the lid on and it will preheat while you mix the pudding ingredients.
Sift the self-raising flour and baking powder into a mixing bowl along with the vegetable oil, granulated sugar, salt, vanilla, apple sauce or puree, and milk.
Give it all a good mix so its thoroughly combined.
Place the parchment circle over the top of the pudding basin [not directly on the pudding] and lay the kitchen foil over the paper. Scrunch the edges of the foil tightly under the rim of the pudding basin.
Place into the slow cooker and pour boiling water until its half way [or just higher than half way] up the pudding basin.
Add the lid and cook for 4 hours.
After 4 hours carefully remove the pudding basin and take off the lids. The pudding will have risen, be golden brown, and a skewer popped in will come out clean. The pudding will also be coming away a little from the sides.
Leave the pudding for 5-10 minutes to settle before attempting to remove from the basin.
Slide a cutlery knife or cake palette knife around the edges. Add a chopping board or plate to the pudding basin top, and flip the basin over so that it can easily slide out. The jam will drip down the edges.
Enjoy with hot custard, or a drizzle of vegan cream, or my daughters favourite a few scoops of vegan vanilla ice cream. Alternatively [or perhaps as well as any of the above] If you have any fruit jam left, gently heat it in a small saucepan with 1-2 tablespoons of water, and stir together. Use the warm runny jam as a tasty jam sauce for those that love extra jam with their pudding!
Notes
Nutritional information is for guidance only and is not intended to be a strict analysis as ingredients vary.
Steamed puddings are at their best enjoyed soon after cooking, but they can be stored for 3 days in a covered food container, within a refrigerator.
To reheat place back into the pudding basin and cover with kitchen foil and add to the slow cooker on the high setting, until warmed through. Do add hot water to the slow cooker while reheating.
Or reheat in a microwave by adding to a microwave safe dish, cover loosely with greaseproof paper [ensure that the cover used is microwave safe]. Heat for a few minutes until hot.
For extra jam topping, gently heat some fruit jam mixed with about 1-2 tablespoons of water [depending on how much jam you use, the water is just to loosen it up]. Pour the warm jam over the pudding, this is especially nice if you are reheating the pudding.
For a traditional 1800s British steamed pudding termed black-cap pudding add blackcurrant jam to the base of the pudding.
Don't have self-raising or self-rising flour to hand? Use plain [all-purpose flour] flour with an extra teaspoon of baking powder.
Instead of fruit jam marmalade can be used, such as orange, lime, lemon or grapefruit.
For a steamed syrup pudding replace the jam with 3-4 tablespoons of golden syrup, black treacle, molasses, corn syrup, date syrup, rice syrup etc.