about ¼ inch from the top of the pan and will rise to about ¼ inch above the top during baking. In a 1 3/8-inch-high pan, the batter will be about 1 inch from the top and rise to about 3/8 inch from the top. (If using a cake pan, the gâteau will rise higher and dip slightly in the middle.)
Glaze the Top of the Cake
With the beaten egg, brush the top of the cake well, using a little less than 1 tablespoon. Use the tines of a fork to make a crosshatch of three to five long lines in two directions. (If the batter has softened, refrigerate or freeze it briefly to make it more firm.) The fork lines will help prevent the batter from puffing up unevenly and after baking will leave a bare tracing.
Bake the Cake
Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, or until deep golden brown and the cake springs back when pressed lightly in the center. It should just begin to come away from the sides of the pan. An instant-read thermometer will register about 205°F/96°C.
Cool and Unmold the Cake
Let the cake cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. If using a pan with a removable bottom, remove the sides of the pan. Invert the cake onto a cookie sheet and remove the pan bottom. Reinvert it onto a serving plate. Cool completely.
Notes
My favorite fluted tart pan is nonstick and 9½ by 1 3/8 inches. It is manufactured by Gobel (see JB Prince in Equipment Sources or La Cuisine in Ingredients Sources )
If using Vermont salted butter, which is lightly salted, use only 1/8 teaspoon salt. Butter that is 80 percent fat contains about 2 tablespoons more water than the 86 percent, which will result in a slightly moister crumb. If you prefer a moister crumb and you want to use the higher 86 percent butter, you can add 2 tablespoons water to the batter when adding the almonds. (If using 84 percent butter, you can add 4 teaspoons water.)
Golden Baker's sugar from India Tree (See Ingredients Sources ) imparts an especially lovely flavor to this cake.
Sticky Toffee "Pudding"
Serves: 12
Baking Time: 25 to 30 minutes
Jenn Giblin, pastry chef of Blue Smoke, came up with this stellar version of this popular dessert. She uses stout beer, giving it the most compelling flavor of any I have tasted. The cake, which in England is referred to as a pudding, dissolves in your mouth.
The toffee sauce is the ideal accompaniment; it absorbs deliciously about an eighth inch into the top of the cake. An additional and unusual accompaniment, served by pastry chef Letty Flatt, is vanilla ice cream flavored with root beer extract.
Batter
Volume
Ounce
Gram
stout beer, preferably Guinness extra stout (see Notes )
1 cup (8 fluid ounces)
8
227
baking soda
1 teaspoon
.
.
large dates, pitted (see Notes )
about 6
6
170
unsalted butter (65° to 75°F/19° to 23°C)
6 tablespoons (¾ stick)
3
85
sugar
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons
8
225
pure vanilla extract
1½ teaspoons
.
.
3 large eggs, at room temperature
½ cup plus 1½ tablespoons (4.7 fluid ounces)
5.3
150
bleached all-purpose flour
2 cups (sifted into the cup and leveled off)
8
228
baking powder
1 teaspoon
.
.
salt
¼ teaspoon
.
.
cinnamon
1 teaspoon
.
.
nutmeg
½ teaspoon
.
.
Special Equipment
One 9 by 13-inch baking pan, bottom coated with solid shortening, lined with parchment (no need to coat the parchment or sides) | Baking sheet, lined with plastic wrap and coated with nonstick cooking spray | Baking sheet or cutting board
Preheat the Oven
Twenty minutes or more before baking, set an oven rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F/175°C. (If using a Pyrex or dark pan, bake at 300°F/150°C).
Prepare the Dates
In a small saucepan, bring the beer to the boiling point. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the baking soda. It will fizz up a lot. Pour the beer mixture over the pitted dates. Set aside to cool to room temperature.
Remove the dates to a food processor and add a little of the beer mixture. Process until a paste is formed. Gradually add the rest of the liquid
Glaze the Top of the Cake
With the beaten egg, brush the top of the cake well, using a little less than 1 tablespoon. Use the tines of a fork to make a crosshatch of three to five long lines in two directions. (If the batter has softened, refrigerate or freeze it briefly to make it more firm.) The fork lines will help prevent the batter from puffing up unevenly and after baking will leave a bare tracing.
Bake the Cake
Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, or until deep golden brown and the cake springs back when pressed lightly in the center. It should just begin to come away from the sides of the pan. An instant-read thermometer will register about 205°F/96°C.
Cool and Unmold the Cake
Let the cake cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. If using a pan with a removable bottom, remove the sides of the pan. Invert the cake onto a cookie sheet and remove the pan bottom. Reinvert it onto a serving plate. Cool completely.
Notes
My favorite fluted tart pan is nonstick and 9½ by 1 3/8 inches. It is manufactured by Gobel (see JB Prince in Equipment Sources or La Cuisine in Ingredients Sources )
If using Vermont salted butter, which is lightly salted, use only 1/8 teaspoon salt. Butter that is 80 percent fat contains about 2 tablespoons more water than the 86 percent, which will result in a slightly moister crumb. If you prefer a moister crumb and you want to use the higher 86 percent butter, you can add 2 tablespoons water to the batter when adding the almonds. (If using 84 percent butter, you can add 4 teaspoons water.)
Golden Baker's sugar from India Tree (See Ingredients Sources ) imparts an especially lovely flavor to this cake.
Sticky Toffee "Pudding"
Serves: 12
Baking Time: 25 to 30 minutes
Jenn Giblin, pastry chef of Blue Smoke, came up with this stellar version of this popular dessert. She uses stout beer, giving it the most compelling flavor of any I have tasted. The cake, which in England is referred to as a pudding, dissolves in your mouth.
The toffee sauce is the ideal accompaniment; it absorbs deliciously about an eighth inch into the top of the cake. An additional and unusual accompaniment, served by pastry chef Letty Flatt, is vanilla ice cream flavored with root beer extract.
Batter
Volume
Ounce
Gram
stout beer, preferably Guinness extra stout (see Notes )
1 cup (8 fluid ounces)
8
227
baking soda
1 teaspoon
.
.
large dates, pitted (see Notes )
about 6
6
170
unsalted butter (65° to 75°F/19° to 23°C)
6 tablespoons (¾ stick)
3
85
sugar
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons
8
225
pure vanilla extract
1½ teaspoons
.
.
3 large eggs, at room temperature
½ cup plus 1½ tablespoons (4.7 fluid ounces)
5.3
150
bleached all-purpose flour
2 cups (sifted into the cup and leveled off)
8
228
baking powder
1 teaspoon
.
.
salt
¼ teaspoon
.
.
cinnamon
1 teaspoon
.
.
nutmeg
½ teaspoon
.
.
Special Equipment
One 9 by 13-inch baking pan, bottom coated with solid shortening, lined with parchment (no need to coat the parchment or sides) | Baking sheet, lined with plastic wrap and coated with nonstick cooking spray | Baking sheet or cutting board
Preheat the Oven
Twenty minutes or more before baking, set an oven rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F/175°C. (If using a Pyrex or dark pan, bake at 300°F/150°C).
Prepare the Dates
In a small saucepan, bring the beer to the boiling point. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the baking soda. It will fizz up a lot. Pour the beer mixture over the pitted dates. Set aside to cool to room temperature.
Remove the dates to a food processor and add a little of the beer mixture. Process until a paste is formed. Gradually add the rest of the liquid
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