Sticky Toffee Pudding

Two years ago my husband and I went to the UK for a vacation and we discovered sticky toffee pudding in York. And what a discovery it was! It now ranks pretty high on my list of all-time favourite desserts.  When I returned home I went on a search for a recipe to make my own sticky toffee pudding whenever my heart desired.  And in case you didn't know, it is not a pudding.  We learned ourselves in England that pudding is just their word for a dessert.  I found this recipe in a book called Favorite Foods by Jill Dupleix. I've made this dessert on a few occasions and always get good reviews.  I'm making it tonight for a Mommies Night Out that I'm hosting at my house.  And I'll tell you that this recipe tastes exactly like the one I had in England.

The dessert we discovered in York!

Ingredients - Cake:
180g (about 1 to 1-1/4 cups) dates, pitted and chopped
1 tsp baking soda
1 cup boiling water
1/4 cup butter
2/3 cup soft brown sugar
2 eggs
1-2/3 cup flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

Ingredients - Toffee Sauce:
2/3 cup brown sugar
250ml (1 cup) whipping cream
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp butter

Heat oven to 350F.  Mix dates and baking soda in a heat-proof bowl. Pour boiling water on top and let it sit. Sift together flour, baking powder and salt in a small bowl and set aside.

Cream butter and sugar until pale, then add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.  Gently fold in the sifted flour mixture, stir in the date mixture and then pour into a lightly greased (8") square pan.  Bake for 30-40 minutes, until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

Combine sugar, cream, vanilla and butter in a sauce pan, bring to the boil over medium-high heat, stirring.  Lower heat and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring.  (I often find that if I simmer it longer, the sauce comes out even thicker.) Set aside until ready to serve, then reheat when needed. Cut the cake into squares and pour the sauce over, serving warm.

Here is how I normally serve this pudding: Pour a spoonful of the sauce on a plate, cut a good size piece of cake and place on top.  Then put another 1-2 spoonfuls of the sauce on top of the cake.  Pop it into the microwave for 45 seconds - 1 minute (depends on the size) and serve.  Traditionally you would add a spoonful of double cream (I find it in a small jar at the Superstore) over top, but you could also use vanilla ice cream, fresh cream, etc.

This recipe says it feeds four - but those must be HUGE servings.  I find that you could serve 8-10 people with very generous portions and everyone is happy.

The mommies loved it and there was just enough left over for my husband and I to enjoy a piece for breakfast the next morning with a nice latte!

Of course in my rush to make the dessert while my daughter was sleeping, I forgot to take pictures of the process, but here is a pic of my creation at our breakfast this morning!