Sticky Fig Pudding with Coconut Caramel Topping

This cake is to die for. It’s dense without being heavy. Fruity. Caramely. Moist. Best straight out of the oven when it’s still warm and soft. Yum!

Instead of frosting, chewy, salty caramel tops this cake. Coconut flakes add a nice nutty flavor plus they look refined, like lace. Or a crown? The caramel does kinda look like a crown, no?

This recipe and its instructions come directly from the fabulous cookbook Sweet, by Yotam Ottolenghi and Helen Goh. As Ottolenghi explains, this cake was popular throughout Australia and New Zealand years ago. But that version used dates instead of figs. Both sound good to me! I guess you could say this recipe is a new spin on a Down Under classic.

INGREDIENTS

2 Granny Smith apples

7oz/200 g soft dried figs, tough stems removed, roughly chopped

1 tsp baking soda

1 cup plus 1 tbsp/250 ml water

1⅔ cups/200 g all-purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

¼ tsp salt

½ cup plus 1 tbsp/125 g unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus extra for greasing

1 cup/200 g granulated sugar

1 large egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

Salted Caramel Coconut Topping

5 tbsp/70 g unsalted butter

½ packed cup/95 g light brown sugar

¼ cup/60 ml heavy cream

1 cup/95 g unsweetened flaked coconut, or finely shredded coconut

¼ tsp salt

1 — Peel and core the apples and cut into roughly ⅓-inch/1-cm pieces. Place the apples, figs, baking soda and water in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, then simmer over medium heat for about 5 minutes, stirring from time to time, until the figs start to break down. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool.

2 — Preheat the oven to 400 °F/200 °C. If using the bottomless cake rings, line a baking sheet with parchment paper, then lightly butter the rings and place on the sheet. Cut strips of parchment paper, large enough to rise 1 inches/3 cm above the cake rings, and place them around the inside of each ring; the base of the ring should be exposed when it’s placed on the baking sheet. If using the muffin pan, line eight molds with paper tulip liners — or any liners — that rise about 2¾ inches/7 cm high.

3 — Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt together into a bowl and set aside. Place the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer with the paddle attachment in place and beat on medium-high speed for about 2 minutes, until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla extract and beat until combined. Turn the speed to low and, in alternate batches, fold in the fig-apple mixture and the sifted dry ingredients.

4 — Divide the batter among the rings (or muffin liners) and bake for about 25 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean.

5 — To make the salted caramel coconut topping — While the cake is baking, place all the topping ingredients in a saucepan and stir over low heat until the butter is melted and everything is combined.

6 — Remove the cakes from the oven and spoon 1½ tbsp of the topping over each; it should rise about ⅓ inch/1 cm. Bake for another 12 minutes, until the topping is golden.

7 — Remove from the oven and leave to cool for 10 minutes, or until they come to room temperature, before removing the rings and paper; use a knife if you need to here, to help release the cake. If making in the muffin pan, let cool in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool. Serve warm.