As much as I love to eat sweets, I’m much more content in the kitchen chopping and sautéing without a scale or measuring spoons in sight. However, once I learned that baking is really just about ratios, it’s not quite so intimidating. In fact, I’m …
Strawberries and pepper? Sugar, eggs and cream transformed into a velvety delicious custard. Cold crystals of strawberry balsamic ice flakes infusing a slight tartness blended with sweet. I think for me, the fascination with food comes in how it can delight all the senses. Alabama …
I first made a version of this cake for my book club, probably 10 years ago, after reading The Poisonwood Bible. I’ve modified it a bit since then and make it gluten free now. Many things I like about it: it’s not too sweet and can be eaten for breakfast or dessert; secondly, because of the sauce, the gluten free cake is moist. It’s also a good “make ahead” for the holidays. It’s late November and the daytime temperatures are around 70 degrees, and the camellia outside my dining room window is in full bloom. Blooming branches from now until March are my favorite! Forage a branch centerpiece from your yard – have dessert on your front porch.
Grease a 9 inch springform pan and line the bottom with parchment paper.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Place the dates in a small bowl. Add baking soda to boiling water and pour over dates. Set aside
In a stand mixer, combine butter and sugar until creamy. Beat in the egg. Sift in the flours, salt and baking powder. Add dates (including water) and nuts. Mix.
Pour mixture into the prepared springform pan and bake for around 45 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean. Remove from the pan. Remove parchment paper and cool on a wire rack.
Pour a little rum sauce over the cake and dust with confectioners sugar.
Serve slices topped fresh whipped cream and extra rum sauce.
In a sauce pan, combine sugar and 1/4 cup of water and bring to a boil. Add rum and carefully ignite to burn off the alcohol, reduce heat and simmer, stirring often, until the sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and stir in butter and vanilla.
I typically go for the creamy, custardy, dessert over chocolate (unless it’s a dark chocolate molten lava cake with ice cream). A meal is not complete without a sweet bite to finish. Crème Caramel is one of my favorite desserts to serve. It’s sort of …
