Steamed Chocolate Sponge Pudding with Hot Chocolate Sauce. Enough said!
Ingredients
For the sponge
175 g (6 oz) butter, room temperature and cut into pieces
175 g (6 oz) caster (superfine) sugar
125 g (4½ oz) self-raising flour
50 g (2 oz) cocoa powder
3 eggs
1 tsp baking powder
A big pinch of salt
For the sauce
150 g (5 oz) dark chocolate (min. 55% cocoa solids)
100 ml (3½ fl oz) whipping cream
2 tbsp runny honey
1 knob of butter
Instructions
Make the sponge
Sift the flour and cocoa powder into a bowl.
Add the remaining sponge ingredients and beat well.
Spoon the mixture into a buttered 2-pint bowl and spread evenly.
Cover the top of the mixture with a circle of baking paper. Cover the top of the bowl with a sheet of aluminium foil into which a pleat has been folded. Secure with 2 or 3 rubber bands or string.
Trim the excess foil and place the bowl in a large pan of water. The water should come about half way up the bowl.
Bring to the boil, cover and simmer gently for 2 hours. Top up the water if necessary.
Remove the bowl from the pan and leave to cool for 10 minutes before unwrapping and turning out onto a plate.
Prepare the sauce
Place all the sauce ingredients in a pan and stir together while heating very gently.
Once you have a smooth glossy sauce, it's ready!
Titli's Tips
The sauce and pudding can be cooked beforehand and stored in the fridge. Simply rewarm them gently in the microwave before serving.
