It is fall baking season. Cooler days draw me into the kitchen. The oven is on, warming the kitchen and filling the kitchen with wonderful aromas.
My new current baking passion is Sticky Toffee Pudding. I kept stumbling across it on menus in restaurants, some close by and some as I traveled. Each was little different, but each was wonderful. I had to make it. I was thrilled when I found this recipe.
It is a great change from the pumpkin and apple desserts that are popular right now—and yet, it still captures the rich flavors we want for fall. The name is deceiving. First, where is the toffee? There are no toffee pieces. It is topped with a sweet, warm caramel sauce, made from sugar, butter and cream, so by definition it is toffee. Also, it is not what most Americans think of as pudding. According to The Food Lover’s Companion, by Sharon Tyler Herbst (Barron’s Educational Series, 2009) the name pudding is an English term for “dessert.” The moist, dense texture comes from chopped dates, but believe me, even if you do not think you like dates, you will love this wonderful cake.
Sticky Toffee Pudding
1 cup chopped dates
2/3 cup boiling water
1/4 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 egg, at room temperature
2 tablespoons dark molasses
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup cake flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
Sauce (Recipe below)
Place the chopped dates in a small, deep bowl. Pour boiling water over the dates. Allow them to stand 10 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter 6 (6-ounce) oven-safe ramekins.
In a mixing bowl, using an electric mixer at medium high speed, beat butter and brown sugar until very creamy. Beat in salt and baking powder. Beat in egg, beating well. Beat in molasses and vanilla.
Beat in flour, using low speed and blending until moistened.
Pour dates and water into the work bowl of a food processor. Process until dates are very finely chopped and mixture is almost a smooth puree. Add baking soda and process to blend. Scrap date mixture into batter. Beat with electric mixer until blended.
Spoon into prepared ramekins, filling each about half full. Place filled ramekins on a baking sheet. Bake 20 to 22 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from oven and cool in ramekins.
Sauce:
1/2 cup superfine sugar
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup heavy whipping cream
Combine sugar, butter and salt in a small saucepan. Cook, over medium heat, stirring often, until mixture is a deep amber color. Watch closely to prevent burning. Remove from heat.
Stir in about one-third of the cream and blend until smooth. (Use caution as it will splatter.) Add remaining cream. Cook, stirring constantly, until mixture is smooth, hot and thick enough to coat a spoon. Unmold the cakes and spoon the warm sauce over each.
Makes 6 servings.
Tip: If you do not wish to serve all 6 at once, cover and store baked puddings at room temperature overnight. Cover and refrigerate caramel sauce. When ready to serve, unmold the pudding. Heat the caramel sauce in the microwave oven until warm, then pour over the pudding.
Recipe credit: King Arthur Flour
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