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Homemade tamales are easier than you think! This dessert tamales recipe from Dora Stone’s new e-book, Vegan Tamales Unwrapped: A Step-By-Step Guide to Savory and Sweet Tamales, will inspire you to make tamales at home all the time!
Prepare to be wowed! These sweet Strawberry Tamales are going to delight your tastebuds and surprise your guests. They are so much easier to make than I’m sure you imagine.
I have always loved tamales, but making them from scratch seemed intimidating. They do take some time, but the majority of that time is hands off. These would make the perfect end to any meal, but especially Valentine’s Day, which just happens to be coming up soon. 🙂
I bet you think making homemade tamales is difficult. I sure did before getting my hands on this ebook. These Vegan Strawberry Dessert Tamales only require 8 ingredients! The directions are clear and easy to understand…with lots of step-by-step pictures to help you out.
Dora not only includes instructions on how to make the dough and filling, but also how to wrap the tamales (with variations), how to set up your steamer, tips on making the dough ahead and reheating leftovers, and she even includes notes on how to make the tamales not only oil free, but fat free as well!
I had the pleasure of meeting Dora about a year and half ago at a Blogger Conference, where we bonded over our vegan lunches amongst a sea of omnivores. She’s the voice, recipe creator and photographer behind Dora’s Table, where she shares traditional Mexican recipes reinvented in a plant based way. Having grown up in Mexico and also graduating from the Culinary Institute of America, Dora knows what she’s talking about when it comes to delicious Mexican food!
Judging by the popularity of Taco Tuesday, I think it’s safe to say that most of us love our Mexican eats! Let Dora and her new ebook show you the way!
The title says it all. Vegan Tamales Unwrapped: A Step by Step Guide to Savory and Sweet Tamales.
Check out some of the other recipes in the book that you’ll most certainly drool over:
- Red Chile Jackfruit Tamales
- Mushroom in Mole Tamales
- Potato Adobo Tamales
- Chocolate Tamales
- Lime Tamales
Think you have a favorite?
What intrigues you the most – the savory or the sweet? I had a hard time deciding which recipe to feature here because they are all delicious. I really thought I would lean toward the savory, but after trying these Vegan Strawberry Dessert Tamales, I knew this was the recipe I had to share with you!
The dough is so delicious, I was eating it raw while filling the corn husks! And then after steaming – oh my gosh! I could NOT stop eating them! One of my daughters asked me, “Mommy, are you going to eat all of those?” HaHa! I think she feared she might not get any more – the kids loved them too!
I hope you love this recipe as much as we do! If you tried it, please use the rating system in the recipe card and leave a comment below with your feedback.
Be sure to sign up for my FREE Newsletter to be the first to get my NEW recipes! You can also follow me on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest.
For even more easy family recipes, be sure to check out my cookbook, The Meatless Monday Family Cookbook!
Don’t forget to grab your copy of Vegan Tamales Unwrapped.
Vegan Strawberry Dessert Tamales
Ingredients
- 2 cups strawberries cut into chunks
- 2 cups almond milk warm
- 1 cup vegan butter room temperature
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 4 cups masa harina
- 1 cup water
- 1 ½ cups strawberry jam
- 30 corn husks (dried)
Instructions
- Soak the corn husks in hot water, in a large pot or in your kitchen sink. Place a plate over them to weigh them down so they are completely submerged. Let them soak for at least an hour.
- Blend the 2 cups of almond milk and 1 cup of the strawberries until smooth.
- To make the dough: beat the butter and sugar, on medium-high speed, with an electric mixer, until the butter has doubled in size and is nice and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the baking powder and salt, and beat for 1 minute to incorporate into the butter.
- Add half of the masa harina then add the strawberry almond milk. After it is completely incorporated, add the other half of the masa harina and the water. Add the remaining cup of chopped strawberries, and beat at low speed, until thoroughly mixed. It should have the consistency of a thick cake batter. If necessary add more water until you reach that consistency.
- For lighter and fluffier tamales, let the dough rest for an hour in the refrigerator. Remove the dough from the fridge and rebeat it, adding enough liquid to get it to the consistency it had before.
- Remove the corn husks from the water and set on paper towels. Reserve the largest husks to wrap the tamales and the small ones to line the steamer.
- To set up your steamer, fill the bottom with water making sure the water is not touching the steamer rack. Line the rack and sides of the steamer pot with corn husks. Set aside.
- To wrap the tamales, pull 24 pencil thin strips off of the corn husks and set aside. Take a husk and dry off the excess water on it with a paper towel. Place the husk in your hand with the tapered side away from you and the smooth side up. Using a spoon, spread 2-3 tbsp. of the dough (¼ inch thick) onto the corn husk, forming a 3 – 4 inch square. Leave a border of at least ¾ inch on each side of the square.
- Place 1 tbsp. of strawberry jam in the center of the dough. Bring the two long sides of the corn husk together, this will cause the masa to surround the jam, and roll them in the same direction around the tamal. (If the husk is too small, fold one of the long sides towards the center, and then fold the other long side on top.) Fold down the empty tapered section of the corn husk, forming a closed bottom. This will leave the top of the tamal open. Tie with a corn husk strip to secure the bottom of the tamal.
- Place the tamal in the steamer vertically leaning against the side of the steamer, with the open end on top. Repeat this process until you run out of dough and all the tamales are in the steamer. Cover them with a layer of corn husks. If the steamer is not full, fill the empty spaces with more corn husks. Cover the pot and bring the water to a boil. Turn heat down to medium and cook for 40 minutes. Check the tamales, when they separate easily from the corn husk it means they are done. If they are not done, steam for 10 more minutes and check again.
- Remove steamer from the heat and let sit covered for 10 minutes. Uncover and let cool for at least an hour. Don’t be alarmed if the tamales seem really soft. As they cool, they will firm up.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition values are calculated using online calculators and are estimates only. Please verify using your own data.
JohnE says
It says in the directions to add into the butter, but the ingredients do not have butter listed . Thanks
Jenn Sebestyen says
Oops! My mistake…thank you for pointing that out! I’ve fixed the ingredient list. Enjoy!
Jessica M says
I keep looking and I cannot find how much masa harina we are supposed to add.. are you calling the dough mix we make at home masa harina? These look delicious and I would like to make them for my brothers Fiesta wedding shower, but I want to make sure I do it right!
Jenn S. says
Hi, Jessica. Thank you so much for catching that!! I’ve just recently changed recipe cards and not everything transferred correctly. I was checking each recipe individually to make sure, but I guess I missed this one. I’ve just added it – it’s 4 cups. Enjoy!!
Alisa Fleming says
I have been wanting to try homemade tamales for years. They always seem so intimidating, so I’m excited by the step by step instructions. And dessert tamales? Now that is intriguing!
Jenn S. says
You’ll be amazed how easy they are, Alisa!! And definitely start with the dessert ones!! 🙂
Amy Katz from Veggies Save The Day says
I love dessert tamales, and strawberry ones are the best!
Jenn S. says
You’re about the first person I’ve heard from that has ever had dessert tamales before! Aren’t they the best?!
Mary Ellen - VNutrition says
I should totally make these for my husband for Valentine’s Day!
I’ve never made dessert tamales before (well any kind of tamales) but I totally need to after seeing these.
Jenn S. says
This was my first time too! You’ll be amazed how easy they are! Enjoy!
Sarah Schaap says
I love this idea and cannot wait to give them a try. I’ve never made tamales, my aunt use to all the time, but now I want to make all the tamales!
Jenn S. says
I hope you enjoy them. Actually, I know you will! I always thought tamales were so labor intensive, but they are super easy!
Jessica- Nutritioulicious says
Dessert tamales?! What a neat idea. They look so yummy!
Jenn S. says
I’m so glad to have discovered them! They are going into heavy rotation around here!
Megan says
What a great tamale recipe!!! I am thinking pork or beef tamales for dinner and them having these Strawberry ones for dessert! Day made!!
Jenn S. says
Sounds wonderful! I was amazing how easy they were. I’ve been missing out my whole life!
amanda -runtothefinish says
I’ve never tried making tamales so this totally would never have occurred me, but I love this idea and something different to serve at a party!
Jenn S. says
I never knew about dessert tamales before either. We’ve been missing out! They are SO good!