Chelsea Sticky Date Pudding with Salted Butterscotch Sauce

I love winter, the cold weather means I can wear layers and scarves, and at night I can indulge in ‘heavier’ dishes such as lamb shanks and stews. Sticky date pudding has a particularly special place in my heart as it one of the first dishes that my husband, Nathan, and I bonded over when we first started dating. We would go to a restaurant and if it was on the menu we knew we would order it to share. I love that food not only provides us nourishment but it also brings back memories and certain dishes hold a special place in our hearts.

I had noted down this recipe from the back of a Chelsea sugar packet when I had lived in New Zealand and I have to say it is a foolproof recipe (so full proof in fact that after making it a couple of times, I noticed that the recipe dictates that the pudding should be foil covered when you are putting it in the oven – something I haven’t done. Oops). I added salt to the butterscotch recipe, because unless you’ve been living under a rock you will have noticed that salted caramel is all the rage at the moment and I thought why not make a salted butterscotch and start a new trend.

This is a great recipe for those cold winter nights when you may be having a few friends over for dinner. The pudding itself stays moist and soft and the sauce when poured over gets absorbed to create a lovely light sticky cake-like dessert. There is a LOT of sugar in it though, so definitely a ‘sometimes dessert’. You have been warned.

Chelsea Sticky Date Pudding with Salted Butterscotch Sauce

1 1/4 cups pitted dates, chopped
1 1/4 cups boiling water
1 tsp baking soda
60g butter, chopped
3/4 cup Soft Brown or Dark Cane Sugar
2 eggs
1 cup self-raising flour

Butterscotch Sauce
2 cups Soft Brown or Dark Cane Sugar
250ml cream
50g butter
1 tsp vanilla essence
1tsp (or to taste) sea salt flakes

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180°C. Grease deep 20cm round cake tin, line base with baking paper.
2. Combine dates, boiling water and soda in bowl. Stand for 5 minutes. Blend or process date mixture with butter and sugar until almost smooth, add eggs and flour, mixing until just combined. Pour mixture into prepared pan.
3. Bake 45 – 50 minutes or until cooked through. Cover with foil during baking if over browning. Stand pudding 10 minutes before turning out of pan. Serve with Butterscotch sauce poured over the top.

Sauce
Combine all ingredients in medium pan, stir over low heat until sugar is dissolved and butter melted. Add salt and stir until dissolved.