Sticky Dates Pudding + Caramel Sauce

We both are so hooked on sticky date pudding ever since Mike took me to Kohi Cafe in Auckland. We would never miss to order one every time we went to any cafes that listed sticky date pudding on their dessert menu. There’s one cafe nearby our apartment that, we admit, serves killer sticky date pudding. We’d fight over who gets the last crumb.

Yesterday while cleaning up the food storage, I noticed a pack of “Medina” dates from Saudi Arabia or also known as Ajwa Dates or the Prophet Dates – a particular one that has dark almost blackish color, but has the most buttery flavors and not as sweet as the others. I know, I’m a bit picky about my dates. Like the best date for arabic coffee must be the fresh ones —– half ripe where the full buttery date flavors is there to complement the other half of almost-ripe-pale-yellow that still has its flour-ish flavors.

Anyway, I’m actually keeping them for some special baking moment, like this time. I know it’s going to taste so good. I’m so very pleased with this recipe. The cake is pretty moist and light, better than I expected. Brown sugar complements the dates beautifully. And the additional caramel sauce drizzles over the cake is just sinfully good. It’s an ultimate dessert kind of thing for me.

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Sticky Dates Pudding:

* 225 grams all purpose flour
* 1 cup pitted dates – coarse chopped
* 1 tsp baking soda
* 2 tsp baking powder
* 3 eggs – medium size
* 180 grams light brown sugar
* 1 tsp vanilla essence
* 100 grams butter, softened
* 250 ml water

Caramel Sauce:
*  200 grams firm packed brown sugar
*  125 heavy cream
*  100 grams butter
*  1 tsp vanilla essence

(How to: with medium heat, melt sugar in pan, add butter, heavy cream and vanilla. Stir until they mix well)

Directions:

1.) Boil the 250 gr water, add chopped dates. Cook until dates turn into porridge consistency. Set aside to cool.

2.) Use electric beater, beat softened butter + sugar until creamy & fluffy. Add eggs one at a time.

3.) Mix flour, baking soda, baking powder. Add into butter-sugar mix bit by bit while electric beater on low speed. Mix in vanilla essence.

4.) Fold in date mixture

5.) Spoon mixture into greased cake pan. Bake at  180°C for 30 – 40 minutes depends on the size of the pan. Just use common sense. When the top of the cake springs back when you touch it means it’s ready. Cover loosely with aluminum foil if the middle part is still uncook while the edges are already overbaked.

**a word of advise: use common sense when baking/cooking. Some measurements in this recipe may be different e.g. baking time may varies – just physically check the cake from time to time.

6.) Serve with drizzles of caramel sauce, a dollop of ice cream of heavy cream.