Double-Date Sticky Toffee Pudding Cakes (Gluten-free)

Preheat the oven to 350 (with a rack in the middle) and butter 8, 4 oz. ramekins (mine are 7 oz., and they worked no problem – the original recipe also says that regular muffins tins could work as a substitute).

In a medium pot, bring the dates and water to boil, remove the pot from the heat, stir in the baking soda, and then allow the mix to sit for about 10 minutes.  Once the date mix has sat and cooled a bit, use your food processor to pulse the date mixture with the butter until almost smooth, then add in the almond flour and salt and pulse until the batter has come together.  Add the eggs and pulse until smooth, scraping down the sides as needed, and then divide the batter evenly among your prepared ramekins.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes (but check them at 20, depending on what baking dishes you’ve chosen) – I found that when the middles were soft looking, but the edges were brown and pulling away slightly, they were perfect.

As the cakes are cooking, prepare the sauce.  In the same pot you used for the dates for the cakes, bring the dates and water for the sauce to a boil, then remove the pot from the heat and allow it to stand for 10 minutes.  Using a slotted spoon, transfer the dates to the same food processor (I didn’t bother washing it), but reserve the liquid.  Add the butter and salt to the dates and process the mix until smooth.  With the machine running, add as much date liquid as you wish to create your sauce.

Once the cakes have cooled for about 10 minutes, you can either pop them out onto individual plates and drizzle (or spread on) some sauce for a pretty presentation, or serve them straight up with a dollop of sauce to decorate.  Serve (and enjoy!) immediately.