Chocolate and fig steamed pudding with chocolate sauce recipe

A wonderfully decadent chocolate pudding made with cardamom, orange and boozy figs, with an unmissable chocolate sauce that is also delicious with other desserts.

Prep time: 25 minutes | Cooking time: 2 hours 5 minutes

SERVES

10

INGREDIENTS

• 175g dried figs, stalks snipped off

• 90ml port, marsala or madeira

• 175g butter, at room temperature, plus more for greasing

• 35g cocoa powder, plus more for dusting

• 150g plain flour

• ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

• 2 tsp baking-powder

• Crushed seeds from 10 cardamom pods

• 190g soft dark-brown sugar

• 3 medium eggs, lightly beaten

• 75ml full-fat milk

• 50g ground walnuts

• Finely grated zest of ½ orange

• 75g dark chocolate (70 per cent cocoa solids), chopped into small pieces

• For the chocolate sauce

• 100g good-quality dark chocolate, broken into pieces

• 100g milk chocolate, broken into pieces

• 175ml double cream

• 4 tbsp golden syrup

• 3 tsp vanilla extract

METHOD

1. Cut the figs in half and put them into a saucepan with the alcohol. Bring quickly to a boil, then simmer very gently for about a minute. Pull the pan off the heat and leave the figs sitting in the alcohol for about half an hour.

2. Butter a 1.5 litre pudding basin and dust the inside with cocoa powder. Sift the 35g cocoa powder together with the flour, bicarbonate of soda and baking-powder. Add the crushed cardamom.

3. Beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, then gradually add the eggs, a little at a time, beating well after each addition. Fold in the sifted ingredients, alternating with the milk, followed by the walnuts, orange zest, chopped dark chocolate and figs (with any alcohol that hasn’t been absorbed). Scrape the batter into the prepared basin.

4. Place a piece of greaseproof paper on top of a sheet of foil (both large enough to cover the top of the basin). Fold a pleat along the middle of them, then place paper-side-down on top of the pudding, with the pleat across the centre. Tie firmly in place with string, using the string to make a handle to lift the pudding.

5. Trim the excess paper and foil to prevent it dipping into the water.

6. Put the pudding into a large pan with a lid and pour in enough boiling water to come halfway up the side of the basin. Bring the water to a simmer, cover the pan and steam the pudding for two hours, making sure that the pan doesn’t boil dry.

7. Put everything for the sauce into a heavy-bottomed pan and heat gently, stirring until the chocolate has melted and the sauce is warm. Leave it to cool a little.

8. To turn the pudding out, run a knife between it and the basin. Set a serving plate on top of the pudding, invert, give it a bit of a shake and it should slide out. Pour some of the warm chocolate sauce over the top and offer the rest in a jug, with some crème fraîche on the side.