Sticky Fig & Ginger Puddings with Whisky Butterscotch Sauce

Sticky Fig & Ginger Puddings with Whisky Butterscotch Sauce – moist and soft, warmly spiced with ginger and best served with a scoop of melting vanilla ice cream. Jump to Recipe  

I’ve just looked over my shoulder and realised it’s been almost a month since I first arrived in Oxford. It wasn’t the most glamorous of entrances: dumped from the bus into the town centre, totally lost and cursing while trundling an awkward oversized suitcase over uneven cobbled footpaths. I couldn’t find a cab, and, being jet-lagged to hell and umbrellaless, was completely bedraggled. Only the rain hasn’t changed, though I’m now armed with umbrella, raincoat and a waterproof backpack (walking with purpose also does a lot to differentiate from the bunches of tourists milling around). It also helps when you no longer need to stop and check google maps every 5 seconds. I’ve slipped into an easy routine of days in the library, punctuated by group coffee and lunch breaks and fuelled by more tea than I’ve ever consumed in my life. 

It’s a very different kind of study to the timetabled structure of medicine. There, days are strictly bookended by ward rounds and tutorials, and the curriculum is defined by knowledge of a specific matrix of conditions – learn them and you’ll get through. Simple, or at least straightforward. Jumping into a self-directed research project straddling medical ethics and philosophy has been a steep learning curve. It’s strange being left to my own devices, and I’m not sure I’ve ever felt so overwhelmed by a topic. Like I’m tying myself up in knots, chasing my tail, and falling down endless rabbit holes at once. Encouragement and advice welcome! I just keep telling myself it’ll work out in the end, and then go back to baking crumble for dessert (arguably sticking my head in the sand, but so far we’ve had a caramelised pear, chocolate & walnut and a spring rhubarb & strawberry and I’d call that a success). Comfort food is definitely comforting.

Anyway. What we’re all actually here for are these sticky fig and ginger puddings with whisky butterscotch sauce, right? A bit of background – sticky toffee puddings have been a classic British dessert since the 70s, and are widely known as sticky date puddings in Australia and New Zealand – a sweet caramel cake made with finely chopped dates and drizzled with a buttery brown sugar sauce. I didn’t really think much of them – maybe a few too many dry yet sickly sweet renditions – until devouring the Gjelina version a few years ago. In cake form and topped with a giant scoop of sharp ginger gelato, I still rate it as one of the best desserts I’ve ever eaten. At Hawker Hall in Melbourne we shared a coconut version, made with red dates and a coconut caramel sauce. Lumberjack cakes made with grated pear are a close cousin, and I noted a version using dried figs.

I decided it was time for my own – adapted from the Gjelina recipe and inspired by the start of the local fig season, though really mainly dried figs are used so you can make it year round. It’s full of three types of ginger – fresh grated, ground ginger and crystallised, alongside a bit of five-spice for a fragrant spiciness- don’t worry, it’s not overpowering. They’re moist and soft, and when served warm with melting vanilla ice cream and drizzles of whisky butterscotch sauce? It’s heavenly. When figs are available I caramelise them in honey or extra butterscotch sauce to serve alongside, but they are easily left out or substituted with wedges of caramelised pear. 

If whisky isn’t your thing, feel free to skip it, but it does both deliver a little bit of heat and cut the sweetness of the butterscotch, and you can buy little mini-bottles of spirits for a few dollars at most bottle shops. The alcohol burns off while you cook the caramel plus it’s only a tiny bit, so don’t worry if you’re serving it to children either! They’re perfect for a dinner party, or just a family treat – you can make them ahead and then briefly rewarm to serve everyone their own individual pudding. 

Cook’s notes:

• Key to that sticky, dark exterior is dusting the muffin tins with demerara sugar after greasing – don’t skip this step!
• I used Texas muffin tins (larger than a regular muffin tin), but you could use any small cake mold or ramekin, or regular muffin tins – just watch the baking time carefully. 
• The lack of butter or oil is not a typo – it really doesn’t use any, and doesn’t need it.
• Any leftovers last for a few days wrapped in cling film.