Pudding, a course to be celebrated! Did you know that on Wednesday the 9th of November every year it’s officially British Pudding Day! Who knew?!
It’s a well-known fact that we’re a sweet-toothed nation and when the temperatures start to drop out come the traditional hot steamy puddings. Farewell fruit salads and ice cream, jellies and watermelon slices, hello apple crumbles, plum pies and steamed desserts. From sticky toffee pudding to spotted dick the well-known classics have been around for years, warming the cockles after a long frosty walk and feeding tummies after a hard day’s work.
What better to share at this time of year than a recipe for the nation’s favourite dessert, sticky toffee pudding, that can be made in your pizza oven! (This recipe can also be made in a conventional oven).
FLAME-COOKED STICKY TOFFEE PUDDING
Serves 6
Ingredients:
For the sauce
100 grams unsalted butter
100 grams golden caster sugar
3 tablespoons (45 grams) golden syrup
150 millilitres double cream
1 teaspoon (5 grams) vanilla extract
large pinch of sea salt
For the sponge
100 grams unsalted butter
75 grams golden caster sugar
75 grams dark muscovado sugar (or dark brown sugar)
2 eggs, beaten
1 teaspoon (5 grams) vanilla extract
2 tablespoons (30 grams) golden syrup
150 grams self-raising flour
240 millilitres water
150 grams dates, stoned and roughly chopped
2 teaspoons (10 grams) bicarbonate of soda
Plus Cornish clotted cream, to taste
Method:
First, prepare the sauce. Place the butter, sugar, and golden syrup in a small pan over low heat, then heat until the sugar has completely dissolved. Once it begins to darken slightly, add the cream, vanilla extract, and salt, then increase to medium heat. Simmer for 3 minutes. The toffee sauce will thicken, coating the back of a spoon. Remove from the heat and set aside.
Next, prepare the sponge pudding. Fire up your pizza oven, aiming for 320°F (160°C) on the stone baking board inside. Using a little butter, grease a 12-inch (30 centimetre) enamel or metal baking dish.
In a bowl, beat the butter and sugars together with a whisk or electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, vanilla, and golden syrup, then whisk until combined. Add the flour and whisk again until combined.
Place the water and dates in a pan and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer for 3 minutes until the dates soften, then add the bicarbonate of soda and mix. Be careful, as the mixture will start to foam!
Add one-third of the date mixture to the sponge mix and fold in with a spatula. This will prevent the hot dates from curdling the sponge mix. Once combined, add the remaining date mixture and fold again.
Make sure your baking dish is buttered, then add the pudding mix. It will feel looser than a traditional sponge mix, but that’s okay; the excess moisture will evaporate in the heat of the oven.
Place in the oven and bake for 40 minutes, or until light and springy to the touch.
Remove the cooked sponge and pour half of the stick toffee sauce over the top, covering the sponge completely.
With a large serving spoon, serve a generous scoop of sponge with extra sticky toffee sauce and a healthy dollop of clotted cream or side of your choice.
Enjoy!
How do you like yours? Ice cream, custard or lashings of whipped cream?