Spiced Sticky Toffee Pudding with Brandy Toffee Sauce

If there’s one dessert that should be on your winter baking list, this is it! It’s a pretty straight forward recipe but hits big with flavour. If any of you have made this pudding before, you’ll know that softening the dates in hot water and bicarbonate of soda gives this dessert its iconic sticky texture. I’ve added in orange zest and a mixture of spices to the sponge, as well as brandy into the sauce, to ramp up your traditional sticky toffee pudding. Its rich, sticky and the perfect treat on a cold drizzly day.

Ingredients - makes one large Bundt (serves 10-12)

225g dates, stoned & chopped
270ml water
2 x earl grey teabags
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
110g unsalted butter, room temperature
175g soft light brown sugar
1 orange, zested
2 tbsp black treacle
4 eggs
225g self-raising flour
2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

Sauce:
1 tbsp black treacle
300ml double cream
130g soft dark brown sugar
100g unsalted butter
A glug of brandy

Method

Pre-heat the oven to 165°C and prepare your Bundt tin with a generous coating of butter followed by a light dusting of flour.

Place the chopped dates, water and tea bags into a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to the boil and remove from the heat. Squeeze out the teabags and remove. Stir in the bicarbonate of soda (it will bubble a lot) and leave to cool for 10-20 minutes.

In a mixing bowl; cream together the butter, sugar, treacle and orange zest until pale and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until completely incorporated. Sieve in the flour and spices. Fold to mix. Pour in the softened dates and water. Stir to combine. Pour the cake batter into your prepared tin and bake for 35-40 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.

While your cake is baking, you can make the sauce. Place all of the sauce ingredients into a saucepan over medium heat. Stir occasionally until the sauce starts to bubble. Continue to cook over low heat for a few minutes until thick. Remove from the heat and leave to one side until needed.

While the cake is still warm from the oven, and before turning it out, poke some holes into the surface of the cake using a small knife or skewer. Brush over a layer of the toffee sauce. Turn the cake out onto a serving plate and brush the top with the toffee sauce. This will help keep it fresh and moist (it also gives it a lovely sheen!) Serve warm with lashings of sauce and ice cream.