Recipe: The Ceili Cottage’s delightfully gooey sticky toffee pudding

PREP TIME: 20 minutes COOKING TIME: 35 minutes Serves 9

CAKE

1 cup pitted dates, coarsely chopped 1 cup all-purpose flour 1 tsp each baking powder and baking soda Pinch of salt ¾ cup granulated sugar ¼ cup unsalted butter, softened 1 egg 1 tsp vanilla

TOFFEE SAUCE

1 cup packed brown sugar 6 tbsp unsalted butter 1⅓ cups whipped cream

1. For the cake, grease an 8-inch square metal baking pan and line with parchment paper.

2. Boil 1¼ cups water in a small saucepan. Add dates and stir well. Remove saucepan from heat and set aside.

3. In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

4. Using an electric mixer, cream sugar and butter in a medium bowl until fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla.

5. In a food processor, pulse dates and water until dates are finely minced (an immersion blender will work, too). Stir flour alternately with date mixture into sugar mixture, starting and ending with flour.

6. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake at 350º F for 30 to 35 minutes until a cake tester or toothpick inserted in centre of cake comes out clean.

7. Prepare the toffee sauce just before cake is ready. Heat sugar and butter in a small saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring constantly until butter melts. Stir in cream and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally.

8. When cake is ready, set pan on a wire rack. Poke holes, about a ½-inch apart, all over cake with a skewer. Drizzle half the hot toffee sauce evenly over cake. Let stand for 10 minutes. Cut into squares and serve with whipped cream. There should be plenty of toffee left over to drizzle over individual portions, if desired.

TIP Purée your dates using an immersion blender.It creates a smoother, more refined texture (and it’s easier to clean than a food processor).

Recipes developed by Victoria Walsh. Recipe photography by Ryan Szulc. Portrait photography by Raina and Wilson. Illustrations by Aleksandar Janicijevic. Interviews by Denise Balkissoon, Ariel Brewster, Andrew D’Cruz, Jennifer Goldberg, Matthew Hague, Claire Hastings, Bronwen Jervis and Simone Olivero.