Lighthouse Dessert Recipes 

For the Bundt Cake:

 

1. Preheat oven to 190°C (170°C fan forced).

2. Mix together the flour, cinnamon and ginger until well combined.

3. Dissolve baking soda in hot water and pour over chopped dates. Put aside.

4. Beat butter, sugar and vanilla extract until pale and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.  Add dates and baking soda water to the mixture. Fold flour mixture in until well incorporated. Add one diced pear and mix well.

5. Grease a 24cm bundt tin. Pour one third of the batter into the prepared tin and the remaining diced pear on top. Pour the remaining batter on top and smooth with a spatula. Place into the oven and bake for 60 minutes. Reduce temperature to 150°C and continue baking for another 15 minutes.

6. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 30 minutes before trimming and removing from tin.

For the caramel mascarpone sauce:

1. Mix sugar and water together. Place over a medium heat until mixture thickens and turns light gold in colour. Remove from heat.

2. Microwave cream on HIGH for 1 minute. Then carefully add cream in small additions and whisk, do not add too much as the mixture can froth up quickly and overflow.

3. Whisk in mascarpone and allow to cool. If sauce is too thin return to heat and add 1 tsp of cornflour at a time until desired consistency is achieved.

4. Drizzle the sauce over the cake.

Notes:

• Adding the hot cream to the sugar mixture for the caramel sauce can result in rapid frothing. Carefully add cream in small additions to avoid this.

• The batter may overflow during baking. Place the bundt tin on a baking tray to help catch any batter that overflows. Trimming the cake to create a flat base may be necessary as well.