Stir Up Sunday Christmas Pudding

I rather enjoy tradition. Even more so when it comes to Christmas. As children my brother and I expected to open our stocking on mums bed, eating posh chocolate biscuits for breakfast. Even at 18 years old. Nowadays, I am creating new ones for our little family. For example, Jack and I both LOVE chipolatas wrapped in bacon and feel they are lost alongside the turkey and trimmings. So last year decided to make a feature of them in the Christmas meal with our chipolata starter and dips to whet our appetite for the main event.


That's the beginning covered, but to end our meal this year, I wanted something we could all eat together. A rich fruit pudding that was free from wheat, barley, rye, oats, eggs and dairy is what's required. I can’t imagine creating a Christmas feast for we three and Oliver missing out on my favourite sweet treats - and his first Christmas lunch! So for the first year ever I have made a christmas pudding and it is gluten, egg and dairy free. Our family recipe is laced with stout, breadcrumbs and flour and really doesn’t lend itself to easy adaptation. Luckily I found a great base recipe via BBC Food website. In my usual style I supplemented some of the dried fruits for what I had in the cupboard and on sunday I steamed my pudding for hours after each member of the family had a stir. This new tradition in my home is based on the Christian ritual from the opening prayer for Advent. It called churchgoers to ‘Stir up, we beseech thee, O Lord‘  who then returned home to prepare for Advent with making puddings and mincemeat on what is now known as Stir Up Sunday.

I have to admit I didn't go to church. But I did stir things up a lot since I made my Christmas cake as well - also dairy, egg and gluten free. It now sits along side the maturing pudding waiting for its weekly glug of brandy.

Dairy, Egg and Gluten Free Christmas Pudding 

(based on the BBC Food recipe)

DRY INGREDIENTS:

100g raisins 

100g sultanas 

50g cranberries

50g prunes chopped 

50g dried apricots chopped

25g dried mixed peel 

50g flaked almonds or, if you cannot eat nuts, sunflower seeds 

150g fresh pear, puréed in a food processor, with the skin on 

1 level teaspoon each of ground ginger and cinnamon

25g vegetable or meat suet

2 heaped tsp baking powder

WET INGREDIENTS

100ml apple juice

50ml brandy

FLOUR

50g gram (chickpea) flour

50g rice flour

METHOD

Mix all the dry ingredients together.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry fruit and mix well.

Fold in the flours very thoroughly

Spoon the mixture into a pudding basin and cover with 2 layers of greaseproof paper and secure with string or rubber band,

Put the basin in a deep pan, pour in water to halfway up the bowl, cover the pan tightly and simmer for 4-5 hours, checking the water level periodically.

Remove the basin and allow to cool. Replace the greaseproof paper and store in a cool larder.

To serve re-steam for 1-2 hours or microwave for 3-5 minutes.

Brixton - the home of gluten free food

image by popupculture.co.uk

I am lucky to live in the lovely, village-y East Dulwich which has an impressive selection of food shops along it's main street. Two branches of organic butcher William Rose, skilled friendly fishmongers Moxons, jam packed urban farm shop Franklins (who stock WAG’s baked goods), organic bakery Lucas who do a wheat free polenta cake and a mean flat white, plus the grocer SMBS who stock a growing range of gluten free products. These are just a few of my favourite, however, being a stay at home mum, I must admit to getting a little bored of the places right on my doorstep. I love to research and explore what else is on offer south of the river, especially when it comes to finding small shops and restaurants using local and seasonal food that happens to be gluten free.

So, you can imagine how chuffed I was when making my pilgrimage to the dedicated gluten free bakery in Brixton I discovered a stack of such places in the vicinity of 'the village'. I would go as far to say that Brixton Village is the new home of gluten free food. I assume this is because WAG free bakery - the mecca for Coeliacs and wheat avoiders - has raised awareness and highlighted the opportunity to locals business folk. Whatever the reason, who cares? The beauty is that every time I visit SW9 I discover another small, independent restaurant, cafe or shop advertising gluten free options.

One of these places is Ms Cupcake, who I tracked down when researching vegan cakes for my son’s First Birthday. She creates stunning edible showpieces that you wouldn’t believe are totally vegan. Plus she vows always to have something gluten free too. My choice (to share with Oliver of course...) was a Banoffee Cupcake. But to be honest it was too good and too sweet to share with a one year old. Shame. The shop also sells a great collection of bakeware, cupcake accessories and vegan cookbooks for inspiration. 

Then, high on sugar walking through the covered market I spotted a Japanese restaurant, a Mexican cafe and a burger joint all advertising gluten free options. Then I was on a gluten free high... excited at all the places still to try. So, I feel it is my duty to the gluten free world to see how good the places are, and of course report back here. In the meantime, I am off to one of my favourite cafes - Homemade - back in East Dulwich for a completely homemade (including the honey roast ham!) and gluten free ploughman’s in the last of the autumn sun.

Free From everything birthday cake

I take much pleasure in researching. Whether for a trip abroad, birthday presents or even cake... oh the chore! But I have to admit that this challenge took some real investigative work. But, after scouring cookbooks and websites to find the most appealing recipe, then after baking five cakes I found something to celebrate with. A delicious gluten, egg, nut and dairy free carrot cake sandwiched and smothered with a vanilla vegan frosting. Decorated with a giant 1 candle and fizzing sparkler, this cake was ready to party.

I can take no credit for this recipe though as I am not an experimental cook willing to create a recipe. I like the relative predictability of a tried and tested instructions But luckily for the birthday boy and our guests, fellow blogger Mel at Pig in the Kitchen is an alchemist in the kitchen and her site bursts with amazing reliable egg, dairy and gluten free recipes.

Given this was my sons first taste of cake in his life, I don't think he was the most discerning critic, stuffing it into his mouth quicker than we could sing "Happy Birthday"! In the name of protecting my cooking reputation, when the invitations were sent I did ask friends and family to come with an open mind. When I said there would be bubbles and 'cake' it would be a homemade free from cake. However it went down a storm, some came back for more, and there was even a "WOW" from one quiet sceptic.

So, down to the details... here is the recipe, courtesy of Pig in the Kitchen. I made double the amount and baked it in two sandwich tins for a real cake tower. The frosting was just normal buttercream replacing butter with half Trex (solid vegetarian fat) and half vegan margarine such as Pure sunflower. The solid fat helps to make the frosting firmer as with just margarine, it becomes very runny at room temperature.

Happy first birthday Oliver... and here's hoping that next year you'll be free to eat whatever cake you like!

Gluten, Egg and Dairy Free Carrot Cake

Ingredients

2 tbsps ground linseeds (also known as flaxseeds)

3 tbsps rice milk

125g sugar

70ml vegetable oil

1 medium apple grated

175g grated carrots

50g raisins

zest of 1/2 lemon

zest of 1/2 orange 

75g brown rice flour

75g cornflour

1.5tsp gluten free baking powder

1 tsp cinnamon

a good scraping of whole nutmeg or 0.25tsp

Icing

120g Trex or similar hard cooking fat

120g Dairy free margarine such as Pure / Vitalite

1 tsp vanilla essence

450g icing sugar

Recipe

Heat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius, Gas mark 4 and line a 19cm (square or round) tin with baking parchment

Mix the linseeds with the rice milk in a small bowl and set aside.

Put the sugar, linseed mix and oil into a large mixing bowl and mix together thoroughly.

Add the apple, carrots, raisins lemon and orange zest into the bowl, and mix everything together.

Mix in the cornflour, rice flour, baking powder and spices.

Scrape into the tin and level off using the back of the spoon.

Place in the oven for approximately 25 minutes. The cake is cooked when it is firm and slightly springy.  Leave the cake in the tin to cool completely.

When the cake is cold, remove from the tin make the buttercream by blending together the fats until they are light and fluffy. Mix in the icing sugar and vanilla and use the buttercream to sandwich together and / or decorate your cake. 

More ingredients = better free from cake

The search continues as the deadline fast approaches for an egg, dairy and gluten free birthday cake. My second attempt has also surprised me. It's long daunting list of ingredients, actually had a simple recipe, as most of the free from cakes seem to do. Mix wet ingredients with dry. Bake.

Today's blueberry & orange cake is from the Chopra Centre Cookbook by Indian health guru Deepak Chopra, although as ever I have amended the ingredients according to what I have in the cupboard. Within reason. I chose this recipe over many others I have found purely because my little boy loves blueberries. He pops them like sweeties, will do anything for them and his very kind grandmother - also known as Janma - sent the whole crop from her only bush through the post as a present for him! He loves them that much.

This healthy, quick to make and bake recipe has resulted in a well risen cake that hasn't sunk on cooling. It's a little chewy on the surface, but I think this is because my oven temperature was too low to start with. It has a really good, cakey texture and even when made with gluten free flour is remarkably cake like. It has quite a strong spice flavour which I may dabble with, but overall I thought it was pretty good. I still don't really believe how good these recipes are (although I must wait for a normal cake eater to give the verdict too since I only eat GF cake now which is not the same).

So this is a very strong contender. I am currently researching vegan frostings for the decoration with fresh blueberries and a candle, but will continue with the shortlist so as to find the best for my boy! And to help me in this research I have also discovered there is a vegan cupcake shop, also in Brixton, home of the free from bakeries. And they always have a gluten free one on offer!

Blueberry Orange Cake


Ingredients
300g gluten free flour (Doves)
120g unrefined caster sugar
1.5 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
2 tbsp flavourless oil (vegetable)
120g fruit puree (I used pear, but mango, banana, apple all work)
120ml orange juice
1 tbsp orange zest
Half cup rice or soya milk
Few drops of vanilla essence for taste
80g maple syrup
150g blueberries, thawed if frozen (I used frozen fruits of the forest mix which works well)

Recipe
Preheat oven to 180degrees centigrade and grease a 20cm square non stick cake tin
Combine all the dry ingredients together and whisk to thoroughly mix.
In a large bowl whisk all the wet ingredients, except the blueberries.
Pour the dry ingredients into the wet and gently mix with a rubber spatular.
Add the blueberries and combine briefly.
Pour mixture into the tin and bake for 30-40mins, or until a skewer comes out clean.
Leave cake to cool in tin.

It looks like cake...

it tastes like cake... so I suppose it is cake.

This is the first attempt at my gluten, egg and milk free birthday cake for my son. A good friend of mine, equally food obsessed sent me a range of free from cake recipes. This had the fewest ingredients and simplest recipe so seemed like a logical place to start, when juggling it with a baby's day.

I am yet to find out the source of this recipe, but all credit goes to its creator and I wil endeavour to find out. It was EXTREMELY easy to make, particularly as I have a a new set of measuring cups. You literally just mix the wet with the dry ingredients then bake for 30mins. And I have to say it tastes alright. I was pleasantly surprised. The combination of dark brown sugar and cocoa give it a lovely, fudgey flavour, and it improves the day after baking.

Given that this is my first attempt, I have big hopes for the more complex recipes I have collected each with rather exotic ingredients, such as tapioca and quinoa flours that I am yet to source. In the mean time, I am off this weekend to sample  my most recent find WAG (wheat and gluten) FREE Bakery in Brixton. A complete mecca for Coeliacs where we can eat everything in the shop, I will be sure to try some cake all in the name of research, and let you know the results.

Gluten, dairy and egg free chocolate cake
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups gluten free flour (I used a mixture of rice and buckwheat)
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup cocoa
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup water
1 tbsp vinegar
1 tsp vanilla essence
6 tbsp oil (vegetable, olive or groundnut)


Recipe
Preheat the oven to 180degrees and grease a 20cm square non-stick cake tin.
Mix the dry ingredients together in a large bowl and make a well in the centre.
Pour in all the wet ingredients and whisk to achieve a batter.
Pour the batter into the cake tine and bake for 25-30mins, or until a skewer comes out clean.
Leave to cook in the tin and remove.

Note: you may find that you need to add a little more water, depending on the flours used. I added about 4 tbsp extra.

Delicious with fresh strawberries and creme fraiche.

The challange - gluten, egg and dairy free birthday cake

I have always loved a challenge. I particularly love a foodie one, and it's a good job. My son, who is fast approaching his first birthday was diagnosed with egg and milk allergies a few months ago. Needless to say, I was gutted. However the consultants believe he will grow out of them so I am keeping my fingers crossed that one day we will all be eating "family" food, albeit gluten free of course.

The invites have been sent, so the next priority is the food. I have never catered for a party before, so I am enjoying browsing through my cookbook stash for inspiration. However my collection does not stretch to gluten, egg and dairy free birthday cakes. I have raided the library, trawled the internet and now have a collection of cakes to try. Not that I think you can call them cakes, since they are missing flour, eggs and butter - ingredients I imagine the judges of the brilliant Great British Bake Off would be keen to debate. 

So for the next couple of weeks we are going to be eating a lot of cake round here. I am going to attempt to find the best free from everything cake and will report my findings here. In the meantime, if you have any pearls of wisdom to share on egg replacers, the use of margarine over butter or any excellent recipes, feel free to comment below.

Wish me luck!