Sticky Toffee Pudding

When I was in Australia this is what my chef friend Warren Lower said this was one of his favorite desserts. I thought how odd? First of all ..."sticky" but I was intrigued and then I found out it was also a great Irish and English desert. But it is a cake, why would you call it pudding?

I was informed that years ago pudding was a loose term for any dessert. For our St. Patrick's Day party this went over the best of anything. I never have had as much excitement about a dessert. Well it is the dates, and the fresh vanilla extract, what can I say...they make it enchanting!

printer friendly 12 ounces dates, pitted and chopped 2 cups water 2 teaspoon baking soda 3-1/4 cups all-purpose flour 2 teaspoons baking powder 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened 1-2/3 cups granulated sugar 4 large eggs 2 teaspoons vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 13-by-9-inch pan with waxed or parchment paper. Combine the dates and water in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and stir in baking soda; set aside.

In a bowl, combine flour and baking powder. In a separate bowl, cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Add 2 eggs and mix until combined. Add remaining 2 eggs and vanilla. Add 1/3 of flour mixture and 1/3 of date mixture and mix until combined. Repeat until all the flour and dates are incorporated into batter. Pour into baking pan and bake about 40 minutes, until set in center. When cool, turn out of pan and remove paper. Place on serving platter or return to pan.

Toffee Sauce:

8 tablespoons butter
2-1/2 cups brown sugar
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 teaspoon vanilla or
1 teaspoon brandy

Combine all ingredients and boil 3 minutes. When ready to serve, poke holes in cake and pour half of sauce over top. Place in a 400-degree oven until sauce is bubbly and cake is heated through (5-10 minutes.) Serve remaining warm sauce on the side. Serve with whipped cream, ice cream or clotted cream

What about Cook's Illustrated's Vanilla Extract Test Results

In the April issue of Cook's Illustrated they did a test on vanilla beans and vanilla extracts.

They used some major brands including McCormick whom many of us grew up with , and Neilsen-Massey that is found in many gourmet stores and then some branded ones like Durkee.

Their conclusion is that good vanilla gets "cooked out" if baked very long. They felt that if you add vanilla extract after the pudding is made you get more flavor.

They tasted different real and fake vanillas in milk, the way that professional tasters do. The real vanillas of course won the day.

One reason is that real vanilla has over 250 flavor compounds in it and they develop as the extract sits. You can taste such subtle spicy, nutty and a complex flavors and in the Fake Vanilla they tasted bitter and medicinal. No doubt, imitation vanilla is made from a by product of paper production or it is a tar derivative. They did say that for making cookies imitation vanilla can do a pretty good job.
Well one thing for sure, it's hard to ramp up your vanilla in a recipe which I OFTEN do, to get that INCREDIBLE flavor if you use imitation. It will turn things bitter fast!

Patricia Rain was part of some vanilla tasting's in San Francisco early this year and she won some high acclaim for her Rain's choice vanilla extract. I say you be the judge. Try both some imitation and some real in a recipe and see if you can tell the difference. I know you will.

This Month's Special

Patricia Rain's
Pure Bourbon Vanilla Extract
Plus Bonus


4 oz. - ~~8.25~~ This month 6.95 6.00 S/H


8 oz - . ~~12.50~~ This month 9.95 7.00 S/H

no coupon code necessary

The rest of our products
The Vanilla Company

Patricia Rain's
Pure Mexican Vanilla Extract
Plus Bonus


4 oz.-~~8.25~~ This month 6.95 6.00 S/H


8 oz - . ~~12.50~~ This month 9.95 7.00 S/H

no coupon code necessary

The rest of our products
The Vanilla Company

BUT WAIT !
That's not all, I want to include these bonuses, You know I can't reduce those shipping charges that I know hurt but I can add some value that just cost me my time.

BONUS ITEMS;

I spent some time to take pictures of this Sticky Toffee Pudding
done with step by step pictures, and commentary. I KNOW this can be a huge hit at your next party. So when you order you will get this bonus ready for immediate download.