Shelly's Recipe

OATMEAL STICKY TOFFEE PUDDING CAKES WITH SALTED WALNUT-OATMEAL PRALINE

Category: Cakes

Cooking spray
1/3 cup water
1/3 cup chopped dates (sugar coated kind)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup Quaker Old Fashioned Oats
1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Toffee Sauce
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup milk

Salted Walnut-Oatmeal Praline
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup finely chopped walnuts
1/4 cup Quaker Old Fashioned Oats

Vanilla ice cream, if desired

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray 4 muffin cups with cooking spray.

Combine water, dates and baking soda in a small saucepan over medium heat; bring to a boil, whisking occasionally. Remove pan from heat and set aside.

In a medium sized mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt and 2/3 cup oats until combined.

In large mixing bowl, using a mixer on medium speed, beat together 1/4 cup butter and granulated sugar until creamy. Beat in egg and vanilla until combined; beat in date mixture until combined. Reduce mixer speed to low and beat in flour mixture until just combined; divide batter into prepared muffin cups.

Bake for 14-15 minutes or until light golden brown - do not overbake. Run a knife around outer edges and invert onto a wire rack to cool 5 minutes. Slice about 1/4-inch off of the tops of cakes. Top with half of the toffee sauce and let the cakes absorb the sauce for a minute. Flip the cakes over, plate, and top with remaining sauce, ice cream and praline.

To make the toffee sauce: melt 3 tablespoons butter in a small saucepan over medium heat; whisk in 1/2 cup brown sugar until well combined, and sugar starts to melt- about 2-3 minutes. Whisk in milk and bring mixture to a boil; simmer sauce, whisking frequently, over medium-low heat, until ready to serve. Basically, you just let this sauce simmer away while the cakes are baking.

To make the Salted Walnut-Oatmeal Praline: melt 2 tablespoons butter in a small saucepan over medium heat; whisk in 1/4 cup brown sugar and cook for 2 minutes or until sugar starts to bubble. Stir in cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon salt, walnuts and 1/4 cup oats until combined. Cook mixture 3-4 minutes, stirring frequently, until golden brown and fragrant; scrape mixture into a large mass over waxed paper, and smooth and flatten evenly with a rubber spatula. When cool, break into pieces.

Makes 4 servings