Chef's Delight: Sticky toffee pudding

RECIPE BY GEAROID LYNCH

A WORD FROM THE CHEFThis recipe is fool proof. It actually works better with gluten-free flour. I like to serve it with the toffee sauce, as well as homemade custard or salted caramel ice cream and caramelised banana.

The puddings freeze well. Place in a zip lock bag or sealed container and place in the freezer. Defrost at room temperature, top with toffee sauce and reheat in a microwave.

INGREDIENTS

(Serves 8–10)

175g dark muscovado sugar

75g butter, plus extra for greasing

70g treacle

30g golden syrup

Two eggs, at room temperature

200g gluten-free self-raising flour

200g pitted dates

300ml water

1tsp bread soda

For the toffee sauce:

100g butter

100g dark muscovado sugar

200ml double cream

METHOD

Preheat the oven to 180°C. Grease dariole moulds with a little butter.

Using the paddle attachment on a food mixer, cream together the sugar and butter until light and fluffy. This should take about 10 minutes. Scrape down the bowl from time to time to ensure that the mixture is fully combined. Add the treacle and golden syrup and mix well. Add the eggs slowly one at a time, then add the self-raising flour after the eggs have been fully incorporated, and mix, scraping down the sides of the bowl until all the ingredients are fully combined.

Place the dates in a saucepan with the water and bring to the boil. Purée the date mixture with a hand-held blender to produce a sloppy mixture. Add the bread soda to the date purée and blend again, then add the date purée to the cake batter and blend well.

Pour the batter into the greased moulds and bake for 20–25 minutes, until the cake shrinks away from the sides of the moulds and springs back when gently pressed with a finger.

While the puddings are baking, you can make the toffee sauce. Melt the butter and sugar together in a saucepan, then add the double cream. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the mixture coats the back of a spoon.

Remove the puddings from the moulds and pour the warm toffee sauce over the puddings to serve.

ABOUT THE CHEF

Award-winning chef Gearoid Lynch is the head chef and proprietor of the fabulous Olde Post Inn in Cloverhill. He is also the kind sponsor of our reader's recipe competition.

To enter, please send your own version of a popular recipe to linda@anglocelt.ie to be in with a chance of winning Sunday lunch for two in the Olde Post Inn, Cloverhill.