The Ultimate Sticky Toffee Pudding - cooking recipe

Ingredients

225 g dates, stoned and chopped
175 ml boiling water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
175 g self raising flour, plus
1 tablespoon self raising flour, extra
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
2 eggs
85 g butter, softened, plus extra
butter, for greasing
140 g demerara sugar
2 tablespoons black treacle
100 ml milk
FOR THE TOFFEE SAUCE
175 g light muscovado sugar
50 g butter, cut in pieces
225 ml double cream
1 tablespoon black treacle

Preparation

Put the dates in a bowl and pour ove the boiling water. Leave to stand for about 30 minutes. Drain off any excess liquid and mash them up a bit if they are large pieces.
Stir in the vanilla extract.
Butter and flour seven mini pudding tins (about 200ml each) and sit them on a baking sheet.
Heat oven to 180c/fan 160c/gas 4.
While the dates are soaking make the puddings.
Mix the flour and bicarbonate of soda together. Beat the eggs in a separate bowl.
Beat the butter and sugar together in a large bowl until creamy, but it will be slightly grainy because of the sugar.
Add the eggs a little at a time.
Beat in the black treacle.
Using a metal spoon, gently fold in a third of the flour, then half the milk. Repeat until all flour and milk is used.
Stir in the dates.
The mixture may look a bit curdled, but should be like a soft thick batter.
Spoon evenly into prepared tins.
Bake for 20-25 minutes until risen and firm.
Meanwhile make the sauce.
Put the sugar and butter in a medium saucepan with half the cream.
Bring to the boil over a medium heat stirring all the time until the sugar has completely dissolved.
Stir in the black treacle.
Turn up the heat slightly and let the mixture bubble away for 2-3 minutes until it is rich toffee colour. Stir it occasionally to make sure it doesn't burn.
Take the pan off the heat and beat in the rest of the cream.
Remove puddings from the oven.
Leave them for a couple of minutes and then turn them out.
You can serve them now with the sauce poured over, but they get even stickier if you keep them for a day or two covered in sauce.
Put half the sauce in a serving dish, stand the puddings in there, and pour over the rest of the sauce.
To serve, heat them in the oven (preheated as above) covered with foil,until they are hot, about 15 minutes.
Serve on their own, or with cream or custard.
Can also be frozen -- mine didn't last that long!