Pumpkin Sticky Date Pudding
With Caramel sauce
A winter staple; The humble Sticky Date Pudding, with a pumpkin twist!
This take on the family favourite is paleo friendly, gluten free, dairy free and grain free and is perfect for winter. Serve with some coconut ice cream or cream, drizzled with naturally sweetened caramel sauce
Ingredients:
For the pudding
- 10 Medjool dates, pips-out
- 1 cup hot water
- 1 cup almond meal/flour
- 1/2 cup cassava or tapioca flour
- 1/4 cup coconut flour
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon powder
- 1 teaspoon ginger powder
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda (bicarb soda)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup coconut oil, room temperature or slightly softened (plus more for greasing the dish, or butter)
- 3 large eggs (at room temperature)
- 400 grams cooked and pureed pumpkin
For the caramel sauce:
- 1 can coconut milk (full-fat), refrigerated
- 6 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- A pinch of salt
Method:
- Preheat the oven to 170 C degrees. Lay a piece of parchment paper on the bottom of a 2-litre (about 2-quart, 8 X 8 inches) baking dish and grease the sides with a little oil or butter.
- Place Medjool dates in a bowl and cover with boiling water. Soak for 10-15 minutes to soften.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flours, spices, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Add the dates and 1/2 cup of hot water they were soaking into a food processor and pulse until fairly smooth. Transfer the paste to a clean mixing bowl. You can also do this with a blender.
- Add 1/3 cup of softened coconut oil (or soft butter) and beat with an electric whisk until fluffy and well combined. Add in the eggs, one at a time and beat to combine on medium speed.
- Reduce speed to low and add half of the flour mixture, beating until combined. Add pumpkin and vanilla, beat and then add remaining flour mixture and beat until just combined (don’t over mix).
- Transfer the batter to the prepared dish and bake until the cake is puffed and the toothpick comes out clean, about 40 minutes. The texture might feel a little wetter than a regular cake but the toothpick should still come out clean.
- Make the caramel sauce while the cake is cooking. Open the can of coconut milk and scoop out all of the thickened cream; it should be about 1/2 cup. Add to a small pot together with 3-4 tablespoons of the more liquid coconut milk, maple syrup, vanilla and salt. Set over medium heat and cook for about 15 to 20 minutes, stirring constantly so that it doesn’t burn. When the mixture starts to thicken and turn darker in colour, it’s ready. Set aside to cool, and store it in an airtight container in the fridge if making ahead of time.
- Remove the cake from the oven and pierce a few holes on the top using a wooden or metal skewer or with a fork. Pour half of the warmed-up sauce over the top and allow to soak for 20 minutes. Serve warm with the remaining sauce and a side of whipped coconut cream or dairy-free ice cream of choice.
