Pasteli is a favourite snack in Greece and a most favourite memory from my school years.
It is honey and sesame seeds cooked slowly until caramelised. I love crumbling it over ice cream but also use as shards in salads with a fresh sharp dressing. A recipe for the hard stuff is in Under The Olive Tree.
Here we don’t caramelise to the point that it hardens and snaps but just enough to have a beautiful caramel aroma. The toasted sesame seeds add texture and yet more aroma and flavour to the overall experience.
Ingredients (serves 4)
For the puddings
- 40g soft, unsalted butter
- 50g caster sugar
- 1 large egg
- 80g self-raising flour
- 80g sultanas
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ tsp powdered cinnamon
- ¼ tsp clove, ¼ tsp ginger powder, ¼ nutmeg
- ½ level tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 3 tbsp brandy
For the sticky pasteli sauce
- 80g butter
- 100g honey
- 3 tbsp double cream
- 30g sesame seeds
Method
Grease 4 individual pudding ramekins. I use an olive oil spray for that.
Soak the sultanas in 75ml hot water for 20 minutes. Blitz in a small blender. Transfer them to a bowl and add the brandy and the bicarbonate of soda.
Preheat the oven to 1800C.
In a small bowl beat the egg. In a large bowl, whisk the butter and sugar with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy. Add a spoonful of the flour and half the beaten egg. Whisk again to fully incorporate. Add the rest of the egg and whisk again before adding the vanilla extract, cinnamon, cloves,flour and blitzed sultanas. Using a spatula, fold in everything until you have a loose batter.
Spoon the batter into the greased ramekins and place them on a tin to bake in the middle of the oven for 20-22 minutes.
While the puddings are in the oven, put the sesame seeds in a dry frying pan and place over medium to high heat. Keep shaking the pan until the sesame starts to brown and release its beautiful aromas. Remove from the heat and leave to cool.
To make the sauce, bring a small pan with the honey to a medium to high heat. Heat the honey for about a minute after bubbles surface and add the butter. Stir to melt the butter followed by the cream. Last add the sesame seeds and mix.
Serve the puddings warm (if cold, I warm them up in a microwave for 20 seconds) with lashing of the sticky pasteli sauce and vanilla ice cream.