A vegan take on Jam Roly Poly, the classic British steamed pudding I loved so much at school. Serve with custard for a warm, nostalgic dessert you’ll crave often. So delicious!
This oven-friendly recipe is made with vegetable suet to create a plant-based option.
What is Suet?
Suet in the traditional sense is a raw animal-derived fat. It’s usually sourced from beef or mutton and has many cooking applications from pastry to dumplings. It is not the same as lard.
Since this recipe for Jam Roly Poly is vegan, it calls for vegetable-based suet. Vegetable suet is made from vegetable fats and tossed with wheat flour to keep the fat pellets separate.
The texture is wax pellet-like and soft when pressed between the fingers. Buy it from the supermarket and store in a cool, dry place. I like this brand of vegetable suet.
Jam Roly Poly without suet
It’s entirely possible to make Jam Roly Poly without suet. The texture will however, be different if you use a hydrogenated fat (fat with water) such as vegan butter or spread.
Suet is a form of non-hydrogenated fat which produces a crumbly, soft pastry-like finish. Therefore, if you use vegan block with water listed in the ingredients, the finish will be more doughy.
For a vegan Jam Roly Poly without suet, virgin or refined (odourless) coconut oil is a better option than vegan block or butter.
Step-by-step: How to make Vegan Jam Roly Poly
Time needed: 1 hour
Vegan Jam Roly Poly recipe
- Pre-heat the oven
Pre-heat the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4.
- Prepare the aluminium foil and baking parchment wrap
Lay a 50cm wide piece of foil on a work surface. Place a 30cm piece of baking parchment on top of the foil and grease it lightly with oil. Set this aside.
- Mix the dry ingredients
In a bowl, mix together the flour, caster sugar, cardamom (optional), salt and vegetable suet.
- Add the wet ingredients
Add the milk and mix to form a shaggy dough.
- Knead briefly
Knead gently for 2-3 minutes until the dough is soft and slightly elastic.
- Spread with jam
Spread the jam all over the surface of the dough, leaving a 1cm gap at the edges to prevent overspill.
- Roll up
With the longest edge closest to you, begin to roll the dough into a log, like how you’d roll up a cinnamon bun.
- Wrap
Carefully lift the roll and place it on the greased baking parchment, near the edge. Roll the log in the baking parchment/foil loosely. If it’s too tight, it won’t have enough space to expand.
- Bake with steam
Fill a large roasting tin with boiling water and place an oven-safe baking rack on top. Place the wrapped Roly Poly on top of the rack.
Bake for 35 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes. Increase the oven temperature to 200°C/400°F. - Brush and bake again
Stir together the agave and dairy-free milk. Unwrap the Roly Poly and brush the with the milk mixture. Sprinkle with Demerara sugar. Return the Roly Poly to the oven for 5 minutes until golden all over. Allow to cool for 10 minutes.
- Serve
Cut the Vegan Jam Roly Poly into thick slices and serve with hot custard.
How to roll Jam Roly Poly
Think cinnamon roll! Indeed, if you can make cinnamon rolls, this process will be a breeze. Due to the sticky and splodgy nature of jam, be sure to leave a border around it to avoid overspill.
Why has my Jam Roly Poly cracked?
It’s normal for Jam Roly Poly to crack a little while it cooks. The foil and baking parchment wrap should be left slightly loose so the pudding has room to expand.
Can you freeze Jam Roly Poly?
Allow the cooked Vegan Jam Roly Poly to cool completely. Wrap it in cling film and then a layer of aluminium foil. Place into a freezer-safe bag or container and freeze for up to 3 months.
Instructions to re-heat
Defrost at room temperature and then reheat in a pre-heated oven at 180°C/350°F for 10-12 minutes.
How to make Vegan Custard
I love this recipe for thick and creamy Vegan Custard from The Veg Space. It’s my go-to recipe and tastes so wonderful with this Vegan Jam Roly Poly. The perfect plant-based pudding!
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Flavour ideas for Jam Roly Poly
Types of Jam
I use raspberry jam but strawberry, blackberry, cherry or even plum jam would be delicious options for Roly Poly.
Vegan Jam Roly Poly with spices
Cardamom is optional in this recipe. Feel free to leave it out for a more traditional take on Vegan Jam Roly Poly.
You can replace the cardamom with 1 tsp vanilla extract, 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg or 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon which is especially delicious with a strawberry jam filling.
Vegan Jam Roly Poly with citrus zest
Fresh orange zest or lemon zest also make for great additions to the suet dough.
Vegan Jam Roly Poly recipe
Equipment
- Large, deep baking tray
- Oven-safe wire rack
- Aluminium foil
- Baking parchment
- Pastry brush
Ingredients
- 225 g self-raising flour (or plain flour with 2 1/4 tsp baking powder added)
- 25 g caster sugar
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp ground cardamom or 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 100 g vegetable suet
- 120 ml dairy-free milk room temperature
- 175 g raspberry jam stirred to loosen
- 3 tbsp dairy-free milk
- 1 tbsp Demerara sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4.
- Lay a 50cm wide piece of foil on a work surface. Place a 30cm piece of baking parchment on top of the foil and grease it lightly with oil. Set this aside.
- In a bowl, mix together the flour, caster sugar, cardamom, salt and vegetable suet.
- Add the milk and mix to form a shaggy dough. Knead gently for 2-3 minutes until the dough is soft and slightly elastic.
- Dust a clean work surface with flour and roll the dough into a large rectangle, about 30cm x 15cm.
- Spread the jam all over the surface of the dough, leaving a 1cm gap at the edges to prevent overspill.
- With the longest edge closest to you, begin to roll the dough into a log, like how you’d roll up the dough for cinnamon buns.
- Carefully lift the roll and place it on the greased baking parchment, near the edge. Roll the log in the baking parchment/foil loosely. If it’s too tight, it won’t have enough space to expand.
- Fill a large roasting tin with boiling water and place an oven-safe baking rack on top. Place the wrapped Roly Poly on top of the rack.
- Bake for 35 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes. Increase the oven temperature to 200°C/400°F.
- Unwrap the Roly Poly and brush the with the milk. Sprinkle with Demerara sugar. Return the Roly Poly to the oven for 5 minutes until golden all over. Allow to cool for 10 minutes.
- Cut the Vegan Jam Roly Poly into thick slices and serve with hot custard.
Recipe Video
Sanjana’s Notes
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Katie
Thursday 18th of March 2021
This looks perfect for my husband's birthday, he's not a fan of cake but he loves a good old traditional pud! I'm wondering though, would it be ok to assemble it ahead of time and then cook when needed?
Sanjana
Saturday 22nd of May 2021
Absolutely!