We had dinner with two of our children yesterday. For dessert I refashioned my sticky toffee pudding into a Bundt. On account of the superior heating qualities of the pan, this turned out a lighter and taller rendition of a dessert that was already perfect. When something reaches these heights, Junior 2 has a phrase: Mum, it is eleven out of ten. That will be the title of my cookbook, if ever I publish one. Junior 1 said I already had a very large cookbook, having shared my recipes in this blog for over 10 years.
Then Cambridge Boy made an observation, that this blog doesn’t generate any income through advertising. At least a cookbook will bring in some money. I said I designed my blog to be free, as it is so frustrating to read a recipe whilst being bombarded left, right and centre (as well as top and bottom) with interrupting words and pictures that have nothing to do with the subject matter.
This morning at church we studied a passage from John’s Gospel. The more I read the Bible the more I see the clarity of God’s central message: that salvation is free and a gift from God through believing in his son Jesus Christ. There is a cost, of course, for how can a sinful human being enter the presence of a holy God without some kind of sacrifice? When I am in my hometown of Kuala Lumpur I am always struck by how many temples there are for adherents of other religions, where offerings are made to appease and to appeal to the ‘gods’ presiding in there.
The beauty of the Christian faith is that the price for this salvation is not borne by us. Instead, it is paid through the death of Jesus on the cross, when he took on the punishment we deserve to give us the new life we don’t deserve. Isn’t this good news, like getting a lifetime of free recipes online?
For the Bundt:
(original recipe with background information is here)
200 g pitted dates, cut into small pieces
200 g water
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
75 g unsalted butter, cut in cubes
30 g golden syrup
50 g dark muscovado sugar
2 large eggs, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
150 g plain flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
Pinch of salt
10 g each softened butter and plain flour to line the Bundt pan
For the Toffee Sauce:
250 g double cream
125 g dark muscovado sugar
75 g unsalted butter, cut in cubes
50 g golden syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Large pinch of salt
You will also need a 6 Cup Anniversary Bundt Pan. I used a Thermomix but the recipe is easily made without one, and simply with a mixing bowl, measuring jug, weighing scales, whisk and spatula.
How to Make:
Weigh 200 g water in the TM bowl and heat 3 minutes/ 100°C/ speed 1.
When the water has boiled, add 200 g chopped dates and 1 teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda. Give everything a quick stir and leave this aside for 10 minutes (set a timer as a reminder).
Whilst waiting, brush 10 g of softened butter evenly over the entire inside of the Bundt pan, taking care to fill every corner. Sift over 10 g of plain flour, moving the pan around to coat evenly. Remove the excess flour by turning the pan upside down and giving it a tap (do this over a sink). Set the pan aside.
Preheat the oven to 180°C/ 160°C fan.
After 10 minutes the dates would have softened. Add 75 g unsalted butter, 30 g golden syrup, 50 g dark muscovado sugar, 2 beaten eggs and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract.
Place a sieve over the rim of the TM bowl and sift in 150 g plain flour, 2 teaspoons baking powder and a pinch of salt.
Mix 10 seconds/ REVERSE speed 5.
Scrape down the sides of the bowl, then pour the mixture into the pan.
Bake in the oven for 40 minutes, or until the cake bounces back when touched. A metal skewer inserted in the centre should come out clean. The top of the cake turns quite brown but rest assured, it is not burnt.
Whilst the cake is baking, prepare the toffee sauce. Simply place in a small pot: 250 g double cream, 125 g dark muscovado sugar, 75 g unsalted butter, 50 g golden syrup, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract and a large pinch of salt. Simmer over a medium heat for around 5 minutes, stirring a little, until the sauce is slightly thickened. Pour 250 g of the sauce into a serving jug and leave the rest in the pot, to pour over the cake later.
The toffee sauce can also be made in the Thermomix at 6 minutes/ 90°C/ speed 2.
When the cake is ready, remove from the oven and prick the top all over with a skewer. Pour over a few tablespoons of the sauce from the pot. Leave for 5 minutes.
Place a deep serving plate over the top of the Bundt pan. Using an oven glove (the pan will still be very hot) turn the pan over to release the cake onto the plate.
Pour the reserved sauce (from the pot) over the cake.
Bring the cake to the table, or if baking ahead, this can be successfully reheated in the microwave (900 W) for 2 minutes.
Allow everyone to help themselves to a slice of cake, scooping up some sauce along with it. Serve with the extra toffee sauce and any type of cream: single cream, whipped cream, clotted cream, vanilla ice cream.
There are 8 servings here, and no more.
Can the pudding be made with less sugar? I considered this and think that any recipe can be made with less fat and sugar, and it would be no bad thing. But in this case that would defeat the purpose. This pudding is indulgent and comforting in equal measure. When I read through the original post written four years ago, I realised that we still have gloomy skies and gloomy news here in the UK.
