Baked Pumpkin-Cranberry Oatmeal Pudding

Happy Friday, everyone! Today’s Vegan MoFo awesomeness is brought to you by Ricki Heller – a fellow xgfxer, cookbook author, Registered Holistic Nutritionist (RHN), mom to two lovely girls, and member of the xgfx community! She’s here today to share one glorious autumn-themed recipe with us all. Thanks, Ricki!

Hello to all who MoFo! With Canadian Thanksgiving just around the corner, I’ve been thinking about food. (Oh, wait, I always think about food. Anyway. . .). What I mean by that is: I’ve been thinking about Thanksgiving-related food.

And when I think of Thanksgiving, I think of rich, dense, and toothsome nut roasts, savory pies, casseroles and other labor-intensive, slow-cooking main courses. I think of rich, creamy, mousse-like desserts and sticky, sweet, flaky-crusted pies. I think of au gratin vegetable bakes, Brussels sprouts, root vegetables and garlic mashed potatoes.

But mostly, I think about cranberries. What would Thanksgiving be without cranberries, right?

This recipe is a Thanksgiving-themed version of one that appeared on my blog some time ago, revamped to include both pumpkin and the ubiquitous ruby berries. It’s blended and then baked for a smooth, luscious pumpkin-kissed interior that’s fragrant with autumn spices and dotted with juicy cranberries throughout. It’s wonderful served warm right from the oven, but also fantastic the next day, straight from the fridge (and I must admit that I prefer the cold version!).

Certainly, this pudding is healthy enough to eat for breakfast, but once baked, it becomes so thick, rich and silky smooth that it takes on more qualities of dessert (and, in fact, when I offered some to my hubby for brunch, he turned it down, saying, “That’s too much like a pudding for breakfast—I’ll eat some after dinner, with cream.”). If you bake it in a fancy ceramic casserole or springform pan, call it a soufflé and set it out for dessert at your Thanksgiving meal with some Coconut Whipped Cream, and I guarantee you’ll be the hit of the holiday this year.

Baked Pumpkin-Cranberry Oatmeal Pudding
Adapted from this recipe

Partway between a mousse, a pudding and a custard, this baked dessert bears no resemblance to regular oatmeal (except, of course, that it’s highly addictive).

1/2 cup (75 g) lightly toasted hazelnuts (filberts), with skin
1/2 cup (75 g) lightly toasted walnut pieces
2/3 cup (100 g) old-fashioned rolled oats (not instant or quick-cook)
1 cup (240 ml) packed pumpkin purée
2 tsp (10 ml) pure vanilla extract
2 Tbsp-1/4 cup (30-60 ml) agave nectar or maple syrup, to your taste*
1 Tbsp (15 ml) cinnamon
1/2 tsp (2.5 ml) ground ginger
1 tsp (5 ml) Chinese 5-Spice powder (or use 1/8 tsp/.5 ml cloves and about 1 tsp more cinnamon, to taste)
1/8 tsp (.5 lm) fine sea salt
1-1/4 cups (300 ml) unsweetened plain or vanilla soy, almond, rice or hemp milk
1 cup (240 ml) cranberries, fresh or frozen (do not thaw if frozen)

Preheat oven to 350F (180C). Grease a 4-6 cup (1-1.5 L) casserole dish and set aside.

Place all ingredients except for cranberries in the bowl of a high-speed blender and blend until smooth (you will need to scrape down the sides as you go). If you don’t have a high-speed blender, you can still make the pudding, this way: place nuts, oats, and milk in a blender and blend until perfectly smooth. Add remaining ingredients except for cranberries and blend until smooth (you may have to blend this part in smaller batches).

Pour the mixture into the casserole dish, then gently fold in the cranberries (scatter a few extra berries over the top as garnish if you like, as they won’t sink).

Bake in preheated oven for 40-50 minutes, rotating the casserole dish about halfway through, until the edges begin to puff and crack and the top appears dry (it will still seem unbaked in the middle—this is how it should be). Allow to cool about 10 minutes before scooping out and serving; may be served warm, at room temperature, or cold. Top with coconut whipped cream, if desired. Makes 4-6 servings. Store, covered, for up to 5 days in the refrigerator, or freeze.

This post is linked to Ricki’s October SOS Challenge.