Chocolate sticky date puddings with butterscotch sauce
makes 10 puddings
Ingredients:
Puddings-
750g self raising flour
6 eggs
500g brown sugar
600g pitted dates
1L tap water
250g butter (unsalted)
3 teaspoons bicarb soda
150g dark belgium chocolate
20g golden syrup
Sauce-
500g brown sugar
250g butter (unsalted)
450ml cream
Method:
We will start by preparing the puddings, in a large sauce pan put the dates, tap water and bicarb soda. Cook the dates on a low heat until they soften and mush easily, this can take up to an hour depending on the dates, stir occasionally to prevent them burning to the bottom. Once cooked, put the dates and liquid in the fridge to cool.
This next part of the recipe can be done in a cake mixer or with an electric beater if you have one, otherwise by hand is fine. Soften the butter and whip it lightly with the brown sugar until they are nice and smooth. Now add the eggs one at a time to the mixture, mixing it well inbetween, if you add the eggs too fast at this point the mixture will split so be careful. Now melt your chocolate and stir it through the mixture. Using a sieve put the flour in and mix well. Now add your cooled dates and the golden syrup, stir, and the puddings are now ready to bake. Fill muffin tins with the batter until they are three quarters full, then find a large oven tray and put 5cm worth of water in the bottom of it, put your muffin trays of puddings in this oven tray and cover it all with alfoil. Bake in a preheated oven at 225 degrees for 45mins - 1hr. To test if they are done simply insert a skewer and if it comes out clean they are ready.
To make the sauce get a small heavy based pot. Melt the butter in the pot and then slowly whisk the sugar in. Turn the heat up to medium and let the sauce bubble for 2 minutes, then add the cream and remove it from the heat. Give the sauce a good stir and when ready to use it just warm it in the microwave.
I like to serve this dish with just the pudding on the plate and a spoon of good vanilla bean icecream, then put a jug of the warm sauce in the middle of the table and let your guests help themselves.
This desert is perfect for cold weather or comfort food and the chocolate adds a real opulence to it. It keeps well and also reheats well in the microwave if you make too much.
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