Toffee pumpkin squares

These dense and rich toffee squares are a seasonal variation of this original sticky toffee pudding recipe. However this time with a few tweaks to include pumpkin instead of sweet potato, and instead of serving these warm with a pouring sauce, I would serve these cold simply with their sticky topping….this is a ‘messy fingers’ situation!  Of course you could also serve these squares warm if you preferred.

In my original recipe I used spelt flour, but here I used my typical GF flour combo, you’d never know the difference. I’d encourage you to try with your own favourite flour mix since the relative ratio of flour is not particularly high so you should be able to substitute other ‘flours’ without compromising the taste or texture. If you want a more cakey texture increase the baking soda, and likewise if you want a really dense crumb you could omit the baking soda altogether.

I made these squares for a friend to take to a work event a week or so ago, gluten free was a specific requirement. I made 36 little cakes in all including these almond raspberry chocolate torte slices (as seen in the photo) and also these double banana blondies (still in the oven at the time the photo was taken!)….all the choices were at the request of my friend (good choices!)  I was up late into the night trying to get them finished for him to take to work the following morning, but it was all worth it when such a positive report rolled in the next day!

Recipe: Toffee pumpkin squares

Makes 16 small squares

Ingredients

1 cup cooked pureed sweet pumpkin

¼ cup soy yoghurt

1/3 cup coconut butter- melted

1/3 cup dates- softened

½ cup mashed/pureed chickpeas

3 tbs brown rice syrup (or maple syrup) plus ¼ tsp stevia

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp cinnamon

1 cup spelt or GF flour (I used 1/3 cup each of almond meal, buckwheat flour, tapioca flour)

2 tbs cacao powder (or cocoa powder)

½ tsp baking powder

¼ tsp baking soda

A pinch salt

For sticky toffee top:

¼ cup softened blended dates

3 tbs brown rice syrup

Method

Blend the wet ingredients in food processor until very smooth. Pour into a bowl, add dry ingredients and mix together until well mixed. Spoon mixture into a parchment lined 8x8 baking tin and smooth the top. Bake in oven at 180C for approx. 8 minutes.

Whilst the cake is in the oven blitz the dates to form a paste and add the syrup.

Remove the pudding from the oven after 8 minutes and use a toothpick to make holes all over the top of the cake- approx. 100 holes. Spoon the toffee sauce over the top and smooth over allowing it to seep into the holes (much of the sauce will remain on top as a sticky layer).

Return to the oven for a final 5 minutes cooking time. Once cooked, allow to cool before slicing into squares.

For further guidance on making gluten free choices please see this post.
For tips and info on recipe measurement conversions, ingredients, substitutions and the methods behind how I do things.... check out my 'baking tips' tab at the top of the page.

Toffee granola bars

For me, the best granola bars are lovely and dense with a great chunky texture to really get your teeth into…also I love a granola bar to be slightly moist and cakey rather than hard and crisp like a biscuit. Most of the granola bars sold in stores seem to be of the ‘hard’ variety.

A lightly sweetened, moreishly moist, healthy, fill-you-up cakey bar to grab on the run…yeah I think that pretty much sums it all up!

I have saved a number of different ‘granola bar’ style recipes from various sources across the net and I’ll be sure to try them out (with various tweaks and modifications) over the coming days and weeks.  However, the recipe for today comes from an original experiment I did a few months back when I wanted to make my own date syrup to act as alternative sweetener. The bar is based on this recipe by Oh She Glows, I loved it’s description indicating a healthy yet more cakey style bar. True to form I had to go changing things round a bit and so this is my take on the concept.

This is the second time I’ve made these bars, pretty much sticking to the same ingredients each time. The bars are fairly soft inside and slightly crumbly to bite into, but I really like them that way- a great contrast to the firm exterior. Wrap them up in foil or clingfilm to hold them together and they are good to go to the office or to be popped in a handbag! These store well in an airtight container for around 1 week.

I have used homemade date syrup as the main source of sweetness and as the main sticky ingredient binding everything together. Dates naturally have a caramelly, toffee like flavour so made the perfect complement for creating a natural toffee-like granola bar.

Recipe: toffee granola bars

Ingredients 

1 ½ cups oats

¼ cup buckwheat flour (or other similar textured flours could be used)

2 tbs ground flax

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup coarsely chopped nuts- I used cashews and hazlenuts

½ cup date syrup (homemade see note) or brown rice syrup- or a bit of each

2 tbs coconut butter

¼ tsp stevia

¼ cup peanut butter

1 tsp vanilla extract

½ cup  cacoa nibs or dark chocolate chunks

Makes one 8” pan. Approx. 12 bars

Method

Mix dry ingredients together in a large bowl (excluding cacoa/choc chunks). Add the wet ingredients (date syrup, coconut butter, peanut butter, vanilla) to a small microwaveable bowl and microwave on medium power for approx. 2 minutes until the coconut butter has melted. (alternatively melt in a saucepan over the hob). Spoon wet mixture over the dry and mix well- use your hands as the mixture is very stiff! Add cacoa nibs/chocolate chuncks last making sure mixture is cool  so chocolate doesn’t melt (if using).  Line an 8” pan with baking parchment and spoon the mixture in pressing it down as level as possible with  the back of a spoon. Bake at 180C for 25-30 minutes until the surface is beginning to go golden. Allow to cool completely in the tin on a wire rack for approx. 30 minutes before attempting to slice with a very sharp knife, as otherwise the edges have a greater

tendency to crumble.

Note: To make date syrup, soften dates with an equal amount of boiling water. let stand for 30 minutes or so until soft and then blitz in a blender/food procesor until smooth. you can also add a little vanilla extract if desired.

For tips and info on recipe measurement conversions, ingredients, substitutions and the methods behind how I do things.... check out my 'baking tips' tab at the top of the page.