STICKY TOFFEE PUDDING

A DELICIOUSLY MOIST BRITISH SPONGE DRIZZLED WITH SWEET TOFFEE SAUCE THAT’S SURE TO MAKE YOUR INNER CHILD BEAM WITH GLEE! PHOTOGRAPHS & TEXT: NATASHA LIVIERO / UNSPLASH

Sticky Toffee Pudding

PUDDING INGREDIENTS:

220g dates

200g boiling water

5g bicarbonate of soda

80g unsalted butter at room temperature

140g dark Muscovado sugar

2 XL eggs

170g all-purpose flour

METHOD:

1. Set oven to 1800C or 1600C (fan).

2. Grease a 23cm square baking tin.

10g baking powder pinch of salt

SAUCE INGREDIENTS:

150g unsalted butter

230g dark Muscovado sugar

225g cream

20g whiskey or alcohol of your choice

3. Pit and roughly chop the dates. Pour over the boiling water, add the bicarb and stir to combine, ensuring the water covers all the dates. Leave to stand for 15 minutes.

4. Cream the butter and sugar with a paddle attachment for 5 minutes.

5. On medium speed, add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping down the sides as you go along.

6. On medium-low speed, add the flour, baking powder and salt.

7. Blend the date/water mixture into a rough paste. On low speed, add the dates to the rest of the mixture.

8. Spoon the pudding mixture into the baking tin and bake for 30 minutes or until the skewer comes out clean.

9. While the pudding is baking, prepare the sauce by combining the butter, sugar and cream in a saucepan over medium heat.

10. Once the butter and sugar have melted, turn up the heat and boil for a few minutes. Then, take off the heat and add the alcohol, if using.

11. Once the pudding is baked, remove it from the oven and prick it with a toothpick or skewer.

12. Gently pour approximately a quarter of the sauce over the pudding, ensuring it covers the entire surface area. Don’t allow the sauce to pool in the centre, or it will become too stodgy.

13. Cover the pudding and leave it in the warmer drawer for around 60-90 minutes.

14. When ready to serve, gently heat the remaining sauce and drizzle over the pudding with a scoop of ice cream, a dollop of cream or vanilla custard.

Notes: Soak the dates in coffee or tea for additional flavour.

NATASHA LIVIERO - PASTRY CHEF natashaliviero

Natasha is a recently qualified pastry chef who is South African by birth and Croatian by blood. She spent many years working for a wellness publication but did an about-turn at the beginning of 2020 when she joined a culinary school to fulfil a lifelong dream to study patisserie. She’s passionate about European patisserie and loves spending time in the kitchen experimenting with recipes (while quibbling with her feline friends), and is always on the hunt for interesting new cookbooks.