Sticky toffee pudding cake

I am a recent convert to sticky toffee pudding and now I cannot get enough of it comforting sticky goodness. It was cold and dark outside and the news was somewhat depressing and I decided a comforting cake was needed. So I concocted a plan to put all the comforting loveliness of sticky toffee pudding in a cake.

This cake was a bit of an experiment but it did all it was supposed too and more. It was absolutely delicious warm from the oven with a little yoghurt and drizzle of maple syrup. It also kept very well and was perfect with a morning cuppa.

I reckon with buttercream of your choice and a bit of decoration this could be an excellent celebration cake as an alternative to chocolate.

I love this cake so much that is is a strong contender to be a layer in my wedding cake... if that does not convince you to try it I do not know what will!

Sticky toffee pudding cake

150g pecan
200g stoned dates
200g dairy free or lactose free spread (I used lactofree this time)
140g light brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 medium eggs
140g self raising GF flour

Heat oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. Butter and line the base of a 20cm springform cake tin.

Tip 100g of the pecans into a processor and whizz until fine then continue to process until it becomes a paste, like peanut butter. Add the dates and blend until a thick smooth paste forms. If your dates are a bit dry put them into a small pan with enough water to cover, boil for 5 mins until very soft. Drain, discarding the liquid, then whizz in the processor with the ground pecans until smooth. 

Beat the butter, sugar and vanilla together until light and creamy, then tip in the dates and pecans paste, eggs and a pinch of salt and beat briefly until smooth. Fold in the flour with a metal spoon, then spoon into the tin and level the top. 

Sprinkle the remaining nuts over the top (don’t press them in), then bake for 1 hour mins or until risen and golden and a skewer comes out clean. You may have to cover the top of the cake with foil to stop the top of the cake and pecans catching and getting too dark.

Leave to cool in the tin for 15 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool  completely.

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Pecorino biscuits

Hi, prepare for a few bake off posts in a row, I had planned to bake along with the bake off and of course as soon as it came on TV I went off to do volunteer work. I am catching up over the weekend and should be back on track by the episode on Wednesday.

I decided to make savoury biscuits for biscuit week, I have already made Florentines and to be honest did not have time to make a 3D creation, why you ask? because I HANDED MY THESIS IN!!! Anyway I genuinely liked the sound of a savoury nibble.

As an added bonus I used pecorino and pumpkin seeds and so I will enter these into this months alpha bakes.

These are gluten free and lactose free, I used lactose free pecorino, if lactose is your issue these are fab but not suitable for other dairy allergy sufferers. If you do not have an issue with gluten feel free to use plain flour and they will work perfectly too.

Pecorino rounds

50g GF plain flour
pinch of cayenne pepper
15g semolina
50g DF spread (I use pure)
50g pecorino cheese, grated
1 medium egg yolk
1 tsp olive oil

1 egg yolk
15g pecorino cheese grated
pumpkin seeds
pinch of cayenne

Put the flour, cayenne pepper and semolina into a bowl and mix. Rub the spread with your finger tips until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Dairy free spread is softer than butter so work quickly and don't worry that your 'breadcrumbs' are large. Stir in the 50g of cheese using a metal spoon. Briefly beat the egg and then add the egg and olive oil to the dry ingredients and bring together into a dough using a metal knife and cutting motion. Form the dough into a fat disc, wrap in clingfilm and chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. 

Preheat the oven to 180C/160C FAN/GAS MARK 4 and line a baking sheet with baking parchment. Lightly flour a work surface and roll out the chilled dough to a thickness of 3mm. Cut out small rounds and place them on the prepared sheet. Push remaining dough together, re roll and cut more biscuits.

Brush the biscuits with a little beaten egg, sprinkle over the 15g of cheese, place a couple of pumpkin seeds on top and add a small dusting of cayenne pepper. Bake for 8-12 minutes until golden, transfer to a wire rack to cool a little before consuming.

We had these warm with a glass of prosecco before a light evening meal and they were delicious, we also had the leftovers later that evening, cold but still delicious... I therefore have no idea how well they keep!