Sticky toffee pudding

For the pudding:
1 Preheat the oven to 180 degrees or 160 degrees if using a fan oven. Grease a deep skillet pan, about 18-20cm in diameter, with a little butter. You could also use a round cake tin or square baking dish.

2 Put the dates in a medium bowl and cover with 150ml of boiling water. Leave the dates to soak for 10-15 minutes while preparing the rest of the pudding ingredients.

3 In a large bowl, beat together the soft butter and brown sugar until soft and creamy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well between each addition.

4 In a separate bowl, sift the self-raising flour together with the cinnamon, ginger and allspice and set aside.

5 Put the softened dates into a food processor with the soaking water and blend to a smooth purée. Add the date puree to the butter, sugar and egg mix along with the treacle and beat until well combined.

6 Add half of the sifted flour and spices and fold through gently, before adding the remaining flour and mixing until the batter is just combined.

7 Pour the batter into the prepared skillet pan or baking dish and bake in the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes until cooked through or a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.

For the toffee sauce:
1 Put the butter, sugar, salt and cream into a medium saucepan and place over a medium heat.

2 Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer, stirring all the time, until the sugar has completely dissolved. Add the black treacle and continue to simmer for another two-three minutes, stirring regularly to ensure the sauce doesn't burn.

3 Once the sauce has reduced slightly and has thickened, remove from the heat and leave to cool slightly before pouring over the warm sticky toffee pudding to serve.