Chocolate Sticky Toffee Cake – RECEPT

Chocolate Sticky Toffee Cake

This is like a sticky toffee pudding – but served as a cake. It’s best served warm, with some crème fraiche.

Serves 16
Calories: 400
Fat: 23g
Saturated fat: 13g
Suitable for freezing: YES

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• 250g pitted medjool dates, chopped
• 1/2 level teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
• 300g self-raising-flour
• 4 tablespoon cocoa
• 250g light muscovado sugar
• Pinch of salt
• 175g unsalted butter, softened
• 4 large eggs
• 6 tablespoon milk
• FOR THE TOFFEE SAUCE:
• 60g unsalted butter
• 175g light muscovado sugar
• 300ml whipping cream
• few drops vanilla extract
• 23cm round spring-clip tin, buttered and base-lined with baking parchment

1.  To make the cake: Place the chopped dates in a bowl and stir in the bicarbonate of soda. Pour 300ml boiling water over the dates, then leave for at least 30 minutes.

2. Set the oven to 180°C or Gas Mark 4.

3. Tip the flour, cocoa, sugar and salt into a bowl. Add the butter, eggs and milk and beat until the mixture is smooth. Fold in the softened dates and any liquid that hasn’t absorbed. Pour the mixture into the cake tin and level the surface. Bake in the centre of the oven for 45 minutes-1 hour, until it feels firm to the touch in the centre. Remove from the oven and leave it to cool in the tin for 5-10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack.

4. To make the toffee-sauce topping: Melt the butter in a pan, stir in the sugar and then the cream and vanilla. Continue stirring over a low heat until the sugar dissolves. Increase the heat and simmer the sauce until it reaches the desired consistency, bearing in mind that it will thicken further as it cools. Remove pan from the heat and leave sauce to cool until it’s tepid, stirring occasionally. If it’s too runny, it may be re-boiled for a little longer.

5. Place the cake on a serving plate and spoon the sauce on top, spreading it out so that it starts to run down the sides.

The undecorated cake may be wrapped in baking parchment, then foil, and frozen for up to 3 months. Allow cake to defrost, then warm it in a hot oven for 5-10 minutes before topping with the sauce. This cake is best served warm. Once cold, individual slices may be warmed briefly in a microwave oven.

crème fraiche – sűrű enyhén savanykás tejszín, görög joghurt állagú
pitted – kimagvalt
medjool date – királydatolya
level teaspoon – csapott teáskanál
pinch – csipet
unsalted butter – sótlan vaj
spring-clip tin – csatos tortaforma
liquid – folyadék
to absorb – felszívni
toffee – karamell
low heat – alacsony lángon
to increase – növelni
to simmer – lassú tűzön főzni
desired consistency – kívánt állag
to bear in mind – észben tartani
to thicken – sűrűsödni
tepid – langyos
runny – folyós
to run down – lefolyni
foil – fólia