Chai tea sticky date and cashew cake, with pepitas and marigold petals.

So it’s been a while. With winter nearly over, it was high time I experimented with a traditional favourite – sticky date. I love the caramel goodness of dates, and I thought this winter warmer would pair beautifully with the spicy flavours of chai tea. Given the dense texture of this case, the cashews blend in beautifully for extra creaminess and moisture.

I  also thought it was about time that I started sharing my recipes, and so it begins…

 

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Ingredients

30g dates, unpitted

30g sultanas

30g dried apricots

60g raw cashews

1 teaspoon baking powder

140g self-raising flour

40g brown sugar

1 tablespoon golden syrup

1 egg

50g butter, melted

2 teaspoons good quality chai tea

100ml milk, full cream

100ml water, hot

 

For the caramel topping

50g butter

50g sugar

60g good quality milk chocolate

70ml fresh cream

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Preheat the oven to 200º C. Bring the chai tea and milk to the boil on a stovetop, and simmer for a few minutes. Strain this mixture, and put to the side to cool. Blitz the dates, sultanas, apricots and cashews in a food processor. To avoid the mixture sticking to the blades, add a tablespoon of flour. Move this mixture into a bowl, and add the brown sugar, golden syrup, egg, and melted butter, and stir together. Add the chai milk and hot water to the mixture, along with the flour. Mix this through until well combined. Pour the mixture into a greased and lined round cake tin, and place on a baking tray in your oven. Bake in a preheated oven for approximately 40 minutes.

For the topping, place all the ingredients in a saucepan, and melt them down. Keep it on the heat for a few minutes to let it bubble and thicken, and darken slightly in colour. Remove from heat, and allow to cool.

Once the cake has cooled, pour the topping over the cake, and decorate with pepitas.

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