Date & butterscotch caramel self-saucing

Desserts
Written By Bea Fawkes

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GF

The ultimate cosy winter dessert with hints of date & cinnamon and lots of caramel butterscotch sauce. This delicious & easy self-saucing will have guests coming back for seconds and thirds!

I like to serve this dessert with vanilla ice-cream and cinnamon poached pears. It is also great with homemade custard and dried pears for a little crunch.

What's in this recipe?

Pudding

  • Dried dates

    Dried dates give this dessert a warming & sweet caramel flavour. They are soaked prior to cooking which makes them soft and dissolve into the batter. I prefer to use dried dates over fresh as they are more economical and there is no difference in flavour when baked into a dessert form.

  • Flour or GF flour

    Flour or GF flour both work so well here. This is because not much flour is needed in comparison to other ingredients and the dates and sauce keep the pudding so moist. I have used both flours in this recipe and both turn out perfectly!

  • Brown sugar

    Brown sugar is used to sweeten the batter and give it a beautiful rich caramel colour and flavour.

  • Butter

    Butter is used as the fat to bind the ingredients together and keep the cake moist. I prefer butter due to its rich flavour.

  • Egg

    1 egg is used here to give the cake a fluffy texture and bind the ingredients together.

  • Baking soda & baking powder

    Both baking soda and baking powder are used here as rising agents. Baking soda is added when soaking the dates which also helps to break down the tough fibres in the dates. Baking powder is added with the dry ingredients to give the batter a further fluffy lift!

  • Cinnamon & ginger

    Ground cinnamon and ginger are used to flavour the batter and give it a warming delicious flavour. Feel free to add more ginger if you really want to taste the ginger prominently!

  • Golden syrup

    Golden syrup is also used as a sweetener in this pudding whilst giving it a rich butterscotch flavour. The bitterness of the syrup turns this dessert from sickly sweet to divine!

  • Salt

    Salt is used to bring out the spices and balance the sweetness of the dessert. Please don’t skip salt!

  • Vanilla extract

    Vanilla extract is added to reinforce the caramel flavour and compliments the date flavour so perfectly. Please use real vanilla extract here rather than vanilla essence.

Sauce

  • Brown sugar

    Brown sugar is sprinkled over the pudding and gives the sauce its rich caramel flavour and colour.

  • Water

    Boiling water is poured over the top of the pudding prior to cooking to provide the liquid for the sauce. It sinks to the bottom of the dish during cooking and infuses with all the beautiful spices making the most amazing, spiced caramel sauce.

  • Brandy (optional)

    A touch of brandy elevates this pudding to something spectacular. The alcohol gets reduced in the cooking process so you can barely taste it in the sauce however it does give the sauce depth of flavour and zing!

Step-by-step photos

Date & butterscotch caramel self-saucing

Yield 8
Author
Prep time
20 Min
Cook time
20 Min
Total time
40 Min

GF

The ultimate cosy winter dessert with hints of date & cinnamon and lots of caramel butterscotch sauce. This delicious & easy self-saucing will have guests coming back for seconds and thirds!

Cook modePrevent screen from turning off

Ingredients

Pudding
  • 1 cup dried dates (roughly chopped)
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1 cup boiling water
  • 100g butter (melted)
  • 1 egg
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/4 cup golden syrup
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 1 1/2 cup flour (or GF flour)
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp ground ginger
  • 1/4 tsp salt
Sauce
  • 2 cups boiling water
  • 3/4 cup brown sugar
  • 3 Tbsp brandy (optional)

Instructions

Pudding
  1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Spray a large baking dish with cooking spray.
  2. Place dates in a small bowl. Sprinkle with baking soda and pour over boiling water. Set aside for 10 minutes.
  3. Add the butter, egg, vanilla, golden syrup and sugar to a large bowl. Mix well with a whisk until fully combined. Pour over date mixture and fold through with a spatula until combined. Add remaining dry ingredients and fold through gently until just combined. Pour mixture into prepared dish and smooth the top with a spatula.
  4. Sprinkle brown sugar evenly over the pudding. Gently pour over the boiling water and brandy (if using). Place in the center of the oven and cook for 15-20 minutes or until the top has JUST set. There should be quite a wobble to it still! Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes before serving hot with ice-cream. Enjoy!

Notes

Serving suggestion

I like to serve this dessert with vanilla ice-cream and cinnamon poached pears. Also great with homemade custard and dried pears for a little crunch.

Storing

Pudding can be prepared ahead and frozen (without sauce) in the baking dish. Just bring to room temp and add the sauce ingredients prior to serving.

Cooked pudding will keep for up ot a week in an airtight container in the fridge however some of the sauce will absorb into the cake and it won't be quite as saucy - still very delicious!

Nutrition Facts

Calories

417

Fat

11 g

Sat. Fat

7 g

Carbs

75 g

Fiber

2 g

Net carbs

72 g

Sugar

54 g

Protein

4 g

Sodium

316 mg

Cholesterol

47 mg
Bea Fawkes
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