Vegan Spotted Dick

Combine the currants and hot black tea in a bowl and stir briefly. Cover and leave to soak for a minimum of 4 hours, or overnight at room temperature.

Drain the soaked currants thoroughly, discarding the tea. Measure and lay out all remaining ingredients. Finely grate the lemon and orange zest if not already done. Cut a double layer of foil large enough to wrap the pudding log generously, and grease the centre area well with softened vegan butter.

In a large bowl, whisk together the self-raising flour, vegetable suet, caster sugar, mixed spice, salt, lemon zest, and orange zest until evenly combined.

In a jug, stir together the oat milk, golden syrup, and vanilla extract until the syrup fully dissolves.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and fold gently with a spatula until a soft, sticky dough just comes together — do not overwork.

Fold in the drained currants until evenly distributed through the dough.

Turn the dough onto the greased foil and shape by hand into a cylinder approximately 18 cm long and 7 cm in diameter. Wrap tightly in the foil, rolling the ends firmly to seal like a cracker and leaving a little room for the pudding to expand.

Place a steamer basket or trivet inside a large saucepan, add enough boiling water to reach just below the basket, and lower the wrapped pudding in. Cover with a tight-fitting lid and steam over a steady medium-low heat — the water should produce a constant gentle hiss — for 90 minutes, checking the water level every 30 minutes and topping up with boiling water as needed.

Use a thermometer to confirm the centre of the pudding reads at least 90°C. Remove from the steamer and rest, still wrapped, for 10 minutes before unwrapping. Slice thickly and serve immediately with vegan custard.