Indulge in the easy coziness of this warm maple syrup-accented cake. 

Pouding chômeur is a dessert with a long-standing Québécois culinary heritage. The French word chômeur translates to “unemployed”; the pudding is aptly named because it was intended to be an affordable luxury for those struggling to make ends meet during the Great Depression. Legend attributes its creation to women factory workers in Quebec who ingeniously combined flour, sugar, eggs, and milk to make a humble cake batter, and adding the quintessential Canadian ingredient of maple syrup elevated it to icon status.

Print

Pouding Chômeur

Makes 6 to 8 servings

Ingredients

Sauce:

• 1 cup (240 grams) heavy whipping cream
• 1 cup (336 grams) pure grade A dark amber maple syrup
• ½ teaspoon (1.5 grams) kosher salt

Cake:

• 1½ cups (188 grams) all-purpose flour
• 1¾ teaspoons (8.75 grams) baking powder
• ½ teaspoon (1.5 grams) kosher salt
• ⅓ cup (75 grams) unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
• ¼ cup (50 grams) granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs (100 grams), room temperature
• ½ teaspoon (2 grams) vanilla extract
• ½ cup (120 grams) whole milk, room temperature
• Whipped Crème Fraîche (recipe follows)

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). Lightly spray a 1½-quart baking dish with cooking spray; use a pastry brush to spread spray evenly, removing excess.
• For sauce: In a medium saucepan, bring cream, maple syrup, and salt to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring frequently; cook, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes. Remove from heat, and let cool for at least 5 minutes.
• For cake: In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.
• In a large bowl, whisk together melted butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla; whisk in milk. Gradually add flour mixture, whisking until just combined and no dry streaks remain. Spread batter into prepared pan. Slowly and gently pour sauce onto the back of a large spoon over batter so it runs off spoon and onto batter. (Do not stir together.)
• Bake until cake is golden, sauce is bubbly, and a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes. Serve warm with Whipped Crème Fraîche. Cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days.

Notes

*pro tip

Pouring the sauce onto the back of a spoon lets it fall gently onto the batter, which avoids creating holes or an uneven surface. You want the sauce to sit on top of the batter so that as it bakes, the layers switch places in the pan.

The post Pouding Chômeur first appeared on Bake from Scratch.