Sticky Date Pudding with Butterscotch Sauce

(Adapted from "Poh's Kitchen"- Poh Ling Yeow)

If you watch Masterchef Australia Season 1, you must remember the runner up contestant, Poh Ling Yeow. I am the biggest fan of her cooking. I always find her cooking very stylish and very interesting. Although, I was very dissapointed when she didn't win the "Masterchef' tittle and I made a promise to myself, if she were going to publish a book one day, on the first week she launch the book, I would rush myself to bookstore to buy her cook book. Approximately 1 year and few months later, she's not only made her dream come true but she made mine as well.  She publish the cookbook called "Poh's Kitchen". Big yay!

The recipes on her cookbook is exactly like what I imagined in my mind, which in my opinion is more for home cook and introducing the food from many countries, from Asian to Western dishes. This sticky date pudding with butterscotch sauce is really caught my eye. Sticky date pudding may sound simple and traditional but as Poh mentioned on her book "This is an oldie but a Goodie", which I am totally agree. 

Here it is, I present you Poh's version of Sticky date Pudding with Butterscotch Sauce.

Sticky Date Pudding with Butterscotch Sauce

Ingredients
200g Dates, pitted and chopped
1 cup (250ml) Water
1 teaspoon Bicarbonate of Soda (Baking Soda)
1 teaspoon Ginger, finely grated
100g Unsalted Butter, softened
145g Caster Sugar
2 Eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
185g Flour, sifted
2 1/4 teaspoon Baking Powder, sifted
Double Cream, to serve
Strawberries, to serve


Method
1. Preheat oven to 170°C


2. Line a 20cm round cake tin with baking paper. Place the dates, water and bicarbonate soda in a small sauce pan and bring to the boil. Set aside and cool

3. In an electric cake mixer, cream the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Add the eggs one by one, beating thoroughly each time. Add the vanilla, fold in the flour and date mixture.

4. Bake on the middle shelf for approximately 35 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the centre of the pudding comes out clean.

Butterscotch Sauce

Ingredients

100g Unsalted Butter

220g Brown Sugar

125ml Pouring Cream

Method

Combine butter, brown sugar and cream in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Remove from the heat and set aside until required

Serve the pudding warm with a large spoonful of the butterscotch sauce drizzled directly onto the pudding, a dollop of double cream and strawberries on the side.