100% SDP

100% SDP
Originally uploaded by knicole7.

We had a weekend away from Melbourne. Off to Gippsland, but not the flooded bit. Just the cold, somwhat wet bit. Checked into our B&B and headed to the Grand Ridge Brewery in Mirboo North.

Fantastic beer, good mains, lovely ambiance, beautiful sticky date pudding.

As you can see, cream instead of ice-cream, but it was still yummy. An added bonus was the rasberry something they had on the bottom. Yummy.

Honestly though, after a couple beers and some champagne, I was really just hungry and scarfed it down with the rigour I usually save for SDP.

The Card Night

A card night was held, which had a Mexican theme in all but the dessert. Burritos were eaten, Coronas were consumed, but not even this overwhelming Mexicana could displace the SDP from it's position as the king of desserts. What is a Mexican dessert anyway? However, I must confess that this was frozen pudding from the supermarket, which, after warming in the oven, was shovelled out onto plates and drowned in cream (butterscotch sauce was sadly not included in the box).

It was sticky, it was datey, it was pudding-ey, it was hot, it was not bad for a foil-wrapped effort. In an emergency, I have no hesitation in recommending the frozen SDP.

Wedding at Poet's Lane

Congratulations Amanda and Pete! Not only did they became husband and wife in grand style at Poet's Lane, they also presented a grand dessert buffet, including the SDP.

The pudd' was warm, springy and moist, if a little pale. Paleness could be related to the amount of date, as we found with our own experiment. The ice cream and strawberries made the perfect companions.

Critiquing Ourselves

We found a recipe online and decided to give it a go:

You need:
1 1/4 cups pitted dates
1 cup water
1 teaspoon bicarb soda
60g table margerine
2 eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/4 cups SR flour
1/4 teaspoon vanilla

Butterscotch sauce
3/4 cup brown sugar
150ml cream
125g butter
1/4 teaspoon vanilla

Method:
1. Check oven shelf position (middle shelf) and turn on oven to 180C. Grease and flour muffin trays.
2. Measure dates and chop into small pieces. Put into suacepan.
3. Measure water into saucepan and place on stove.
4. Bring dates and water to boil, reduce heat and simmer until dates are mushy.
5. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
6. Beat eggs. Measure table marg.
7. Measure and sift flour and bi-carb soda onto plate.
8. Measure and add sugar and vanilla to date mixture. Add marg.
9. Add eggs gradually, stirring well after each addition. Fold in flour and soda with a wooden spoon.
10. Spoon mixture into muffin tins and bake for 12-15 minutes.
11. Turn out muffins onto cake cooler. Cover with a clean tea towel to keep warm.

Butterscotch sauce
1. Measure sugar, cream, butter and vanilla into a saucepan.
2. Combine all ingredients - bring to boil while stirring.
3. Turn down heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Stir occasionally. Keep warm in a jug.

Serving Suggestion: Place one sticky date pudding onto a small plate. Pour a little butterscotch sauce over pudding, place a scoop of icecream beside pudding and garnish with mint leaves.

It was yummy. We have a lot of little sticky date muffins now. It could be darker in color. More dates next time, but making it was great. The smell was incredible. Even before we added all the sugar and stuff. Yum-may

We'll have to give another go sometime.

Friendly Sticky Date BBQ Dessert

This particular little SDP was eaten on Anzac Day, which is traditionally a biscuit day, but I think that SDP is a suitably Aussie substitute, nonetheless. And, to top it off, home made by a friend. It was more a sticky data cake, cooked in a large tray and then cut up for sharing. Even the butterscotch sauce was brought along in a separate container to pour out over the delicious little pieces. Just the treat after waiting for an hour and a half for a sausage to cook on a public BBQ. Obviously we couldn't warm either the cake or the sauce, but very very tasty.

Yeah Maan SDP

Yeah Maan SDP
Originally uploaded by knicole7.

The inspiration.

Finally, we arrived at Yeah Maan, AND it was open and they had Sticky Date Pudding.

As good as I remembered it. Definitely the best presentation so far with the kiwis, strawberries, ice-cream and cinnamon stick garnish. I also like the cinnamon dusted on the plate. Yeah maan.

The taste was consistent and enchanting. I also took a picture of the menu, and maybe one day when I'm not feeling so cheap, I'll text it to Adam's phone and he can bluetooth it to the computer (my phone doesn't have that feature).

My brother Mark was visiting and quite enjoyed Yeah Maan as well. Only he ordered the 'Apple Thingy', which was actually also quite good. Warmed cinnamon apples covered in a carmalized red wine sauce. I like the sauce. Red wine sauce over sticky date? Maybe we'll give it a go one day.

Anyway, the only criticism of 'the inspiration' was Adam felt that there wasn't enough butterscotch sauce.

Still yummy though.


Maybe I'm not as cheap as I thought...

SDD - Sticky Date Disappointment

This post involves the home of the greatest SDP that we have yet tasted, Yeah Maan, and two unfortunate occurences. Firstly, we were all set for a evening of delicious Caribbean fare, topped off naturally with SDP delight. To our surprise and shock, the restaurant in question was dark, quiet and most definitely closed.

Secondly, a gathering was arranged for a group of friends at the same fine establishment, many of whom had been enticed with the promise of SDP. However, upon enquiry during the serving of the mains as to the availability of the dessert, we were informed that the last piece had just been served, and that no more would be forthcoming. Disaster!

Turns out that the reason for the lack of SDP was because at Yeah Maan it is made by the mother of one of the staff. So therein lies the secret - best because it is home made.

The moral of the story is: to avoid disappointment, order your dessert early.

In memory of Sticky Date that could have been....


Post written by Adam, picture added by Nicole

Birthday SDP

Birthday SDP
Originally uploaded by knicole7.

We started off the week quite sadly with the demise of our beloved Friz:

,
run over by a car outside Caulfield park. Rest in peace beloved...

Anyway, things were looking up with Durga's birthday and our task of buying the birthday cake. We walked by the bakery outside of Coles (can't remember the name right now sadly) in St. Kilda and paused in our footsteps. Could it be true? Is that a sticky date pudding? Our task was clear. We must buy it.

Clearly the 'Happy Birthday Durga' did not stay on the butterscotch sauce properly, but the bakery did provide us with an extra tub of that delicious sweetness to pour over the final cake.

So we met up with the gang at Mamma Dukes at Caulfield Monash to not only celebrate Durga's 26 years, but also her release from hospital (yay!). Expensive wine that was discounted for us flowed regularly, the dinners were satisfying and all were having a good time.

Alas, the "Happy Birthday" was sung and we hailed the beauty of Sticky Date with a sparkler on top. Pieces were cut, the extra butterscotch was placed on the table and all rejoiced...

Except, my beloved co-blogger. As we were handing out the many pieces of sticky date it seems that there was a miscount and Adam was left out of the distribution. Thus it forced us to share my small piece of sticky birthday...

It was good because it was birthday and had the extra sauce. It would have been better if it were heated, Adam got his own piece and there was some kind of ice cream beside it.

But I enjoyed it, and I believe the rest of the party did as well.

Stucky Date Pudding

Kia ora!

It appears that along with the possum, the sticky date pudding has been introduced into the land of the Kiwi, with similar devastating results on the local environment (well, maybe not).

This particular little sample was had in a pub in Motueka. It is a slight variation on the norm, in that the sauce was caramel, rather than the traditional butterscotch. Still OK, but not as good as the original. Let's just say that it didn't last long on the plate, and that was after four lamb chops for dinner, plus wedges for afternoon tea AND nachos for lunch. This was post kayak/hike semi-starvation, after all.

Done.

Sticky Date Honey

Sticky Date Honey
Originally uploaded by knicole7.

Honey? AND Sticky Date? I don't believe you.

But yes, it's true. Found in the fine honey producing country of New Zealand at the Honey Hive and Meadery outside of Taupo.

And what a selection of honey they had! We got there about 45 minutes before close, but this blogger still managed to walk out with over $40 worth of honey products. So yummy. The Rata is spectacular, but unfortunately only a memory now...

But I digress. So they had Sticky Date Honey. It's pretty close to the pudding, but with honey. I bought some and brought it back to Australia, so I can continue to taste it.

If honey could be a sticky date, it is. And this New Zealand version is it.

It was overkill. Honey AND Sticky Date. Too much... Too much...

The Cookie

SDCookie
Originally uploaded by knicole7.

Something new, something new.

First off, unlike my usual tastings, this one was done in quite a different (almost opposite) state of mind...

A bit hungover after a big night of Modest Mouse and having my oldest and dearest friend come for a visit, we decided to head to the Australian Centre for Contemporary Art (ACCA) to numb our aching heads.

I ordered my chai and a fudge cookie, when alas! I saw this sticky date ginger cookie. I had to get it even without my co-blogger present.

I must say it was fantastic. SDP works in the cookie form. My friend who was present said he prefered it to his fudge cookie. Yum Yum. I believe it is produced by the Byron Bay Cookie Company.

Final Review: An excellent substitute for the SDP and a happy solution to a sad hangover.

Goodness Gracious...

Baraka SDP, with fork for scale


…Great Balls of Desire! After being denied these (no doubt) delicious chick pea concoctions which had been advertised so effectively on a chalkboard out the front of Baraka on Clarendon in South Melbourne, there was really no hesitation about whether or not to sample the SDP on offer. There were a few moments of apprehension when it appeared that a cheesecake was coming our way rather than our dessert of choice, but fortunately the SDP arrived in due course.

Now, there is some background information which is critical to the remainder of the review. You see, we were on a bit of a tight schedule, since we needed to complete our dining experience within an hour, as we had a very important appointment at the Butterfly Club to see “In a Baltic State”.

As mentioned above, when faced with the possibility of a cheesecake rather than an SDP landing on our table, it was not only the fact that the wrong dessert would have arrived; we would have been forced to go without dessert entirely or miss the show, such were the time constraints. Consequently, the consumption of the SDP was rather rushed, and this may have influenced the following review (yes I am actually going to talk about the dessert now!).

As was the case for Soul Mama, the pudding and the ice cream were presented separately, the pudding on the plate drowned in butterscotch sauce, and the ice cream in a little white bowl about the size of a shot glass. The pudding was moist, not particularly hot, but by no means cold, and the sauce was sufficiently viscous not to drip everywhere. The quantity of ice cream could have been a little more generous. All in all, a decent SDP, and competitively priced.

Give me some Soul, Mama

Soul Mama SDP
Originally uploaded by knicole7.

Lame title, I know.

Anyway, Soul Mama - restaurant with a fantastic view, good vegetarian food and sticky date pudding.

I have to admit, that this blogger had her share of wine prior to the desert, and Adam (my co-blogger who has yet to blog) was not with me on this SDP occasion, but I did get some feedback from my fellow diners. I did manage to get off this text as I was sampling the pud -

"Luke warm, could be softer, small serving, ire [sic] cream separate..."

So we can attempt to interpret that.

I did finish the desert, but it could have been warmer. Other feedback guessed that it was microwaved, thus the lukewarm nature. The separate ice cream could be a good idea, but then it makes it harder to mush the two together. Although, ice cream is a good addition for SDP. It still had the grainy texture, but it didn't quite melt in my mouth.

So it pleased my drunken self, but even in my intoxicated state I realised it wasn't the best SDP I've had.

Vegie Bar

Veggie Bar
Originally uploaded by knicole7.

Alright, we never actually got around to trying this SDP.

ONLY because, it wasn't on the menu and we didn't see it until we were leaving (loses points for inaccessabilty). Thus the picture of the complete pudding (with no pieces missing) in the display case.

However, we will conduct a visual critique.

1.) The actual dates on the top of the desert, are not very appealing. I realise it's sticky date pudding, but I don't want to know I'm actually eating dates. I'm not retired and I don't need them to 'get things moving'.

2.) Whatever sauce they had on it, doesn't look very appealing. I personally, feel that the sauce should be more runny and flow off of the pudding. The crusty hard stuff doesn't look that good.

Don't get me wrong, Vegie Bar does have decent vegetarian food. I did get the burrito, so I'm not sure if I could have handled a full SDP actually.

So anyway, VISUALLY speaking, the vegie bar scores a bit low on the desirability scale. But I would still try it.

The Country Wedding

Sticky Date Pudding 1
Originally uploaded by knicole7.

We'd been thinking of this blog for months. Inspired by the desert at Yeah Maan (to be reviewed) and then eaten at various places around Melbourne, we decided a blog review was necessary in order to determine the best Sticky Date Pudding (apparently an Australian desert.)

Anyway, this sample is from a wedding in country Victoria. I must say, it was the best part of the meal, although a bit dry. More sticky is needed. The name card has my name spelled incorrectly. There were lipstick stains on the glasses and the wine came from casks - "wine-in-a-box!". It wasn't the best sample to start out with, but we finally had a camera to take a picture. Our other option was a cream filled eclair. This looks like it beat the eclair.

I'm also not sure how I felt about it being accompanied by whipped cream. I think ice cream is better.

But as I said, it was the best part of the meal by far.

Sticky Date Pudding

A blog devoted to sticky date pudding and finding the best one.