Serves 6

Banana and Date Puddings with Toffee-Rum Sauce

This has to be one of the best comfort foods of all time. Bananas, toffee and a touch of rum - heavenly.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup chopped dried dates
  • ½ cup water
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 2 mashed Dole bananas
  • ¼ cup golden syrup
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 75g softened butter
  • ½ cup brown sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 180g self rising flour
  • ¾ teaspoon cinnamon
  • 2 bananas, sliced, to serve
  • Yoghurt, cream or ice cream, to serve
  • Rum Toffee Sauce
  • 50g butter
  • ½ cup golden syrup
  • 2 tablespoons rum (1teaspoon of rum essence if preffered)
  • 2 tablespoons cream

Method

  1. Preheat oven to 180°C. Grease six medium to large ramekins.
  2. Boil dates and water in a small pot for a few minutes, stirring to break up the dates. Remove from heat and mix in the baking soda. Mix in the mashed banana, golden syrup and vanilla.
  3. Cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time, until well incorporated.  Mix into banana and date mixture.
  4. Sieve flour and cinnamon together into a mixing bowl. Add wet mixture to the flour and fold together until well combined.
  5. Fill ramekins to three quarters full with batter. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
  6. To make the rum toffee sauce, melt butter and golden syrup together in a pot and boil for a few minutes until a thick caramel sauce. Stir in the rum (or essence) and turn off the heat. Stir in the cream.
  7. Run a knife around the edge of the ramekins to loosen the puddings. To serve, turn each pudding out onto a plate, and spoon over toffee sauce. Garnish with sliced banana and a dollop of yoghurt, cream or ice cream.
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