Healthy, festive sugar plums made from dried fruit, nuts, honey and warm spices. Naturally gluten- and grain-free, and easy to make vegan. Delicious and adaptable — a great holiday treat.
These sugar plums are something I’ve wanted to make for a long time, and I couldn’t wait another year to share them. They’re simple, fast, and endlessly adaptable — you can likely make a batch tonight with ingredients already in your pantry. Kids love helping, especially rolling the little balls in sugar or powdered coating.
I rolled most of mine in coarse raw sugar, which gives a nice crunch and looks pretty on the finished plums. A few were rolled in powdered sugar, but powdered sugar can be absorbed into the plums and lose its appearance after a day, so I prefer the coarse sugar. You can also leave them uncoated — the plain fruit-and-nut finish is attractive and similar in texture to a Larabar, with extra sweetness from a bit of honey and bright orange zest. The warm spices round everything out beautifully.
In the background of the photos I also made raw peppermint brownies topped with crushed candy canes — another festive treat I’ll share soon. For now, here’s the sugar plum recipe. They improve after a day and keep up to two weeks in an airtight container at room temperature.
Sugar Plums
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cups almonds
- 1 cup dried plums
- 1/2 cup dried figs
- 1/2 cup golden raisins (or apricots if you prefer)
- Generous pinch sea salt
- 3–4 tablespoons honey (or agave/maple syrup to make vegan)
- Zest of one large navel orange
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- Dash of cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon cardamom
- 3/4 teaspoon whole anise seeds
Instructions
- In a food processor, pulse the almonds until they are finely ground. Transfer the ground nuts to a bowl and set aside.
- Add all the dried fruit to the food processor and process until it breaks down and forms a sticky ball, similar to dough.
- Cut the fruit ball into pieces with a knife, return the ground almonds to the food processor, and add the salt, honey (or alternative), orange zest and all spices. Process until fully combined and the mixture begins to clump.
- Scoop small bite-sized portions and roll them into balls. If desired, roll each ball in coarse raw sugar or powdered sugar for coating.
- Store in an airtight container. The flavor improves after a day; they keep up to two weeks at room temperature.
Notes
These sugar plums are highly customizable. Some variations use dates, different proportions of plums, alternate spices, or more sugar in the mixture. If your dried plums are very sticky, rolling in sugar helps prevent the plums from sticking together. Add extra nuts if the mixture is too sticky.
To make the recipe vegan, replace honey with agave or pure maple syrup, or add a small amount of water as needed for binding. This recipe was inspired by classic sugar plum recipes adapted to a simple, wholesome version.
