Pouding Chômeur (Maple Cake Pudding)
Local name: Pouding chômeur
In short: A plain vanilla cake batter spooned over hot maple and cream sauce, baked until golden with a pool of sticky maple caramel underneath. It takes about 50 min in total and makes 8 servings.
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 35 min
- Total
- 50 min
- Servings
- 8
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Calories
- 410 kcal
Pouding chômeur, meaning unemployed person's pudding, is a humble Québec dessert said to come from hard times. A basic cake batter is dropped over a hot sauce of maple syrup and cream, and as it bakes the batter rises while the sauce bubbles up around it, leaving a soft cake sitting in a pool of caramel. It uses pantry ingredients and takes about 15 minutes to put together. Serve it warm, with cream or vanilla ice cream.
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 175°C (350°F) and butter a 23 cm (9 in) square baking dish with sides at least 5 cm (2 in) high.
- Heat the maple syrup, cream, butter and salt in a saucepan until gently bubbling, about 3 to 4 minutes. Pour the hot sauce into the dish.
- Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt together. In another bowl, beat the softened butter and sugar for 2 minutes until pale, then beat in the egg and vanilla.
- Stir the flour mixture into the butter mixture in two additions, alternating with the milk, until the batter is smooth.
- Spoon the batter in large dollops over the hot sauce and level it lightly. Do not stir.
- Set the dish on a baking sheet to catch drips and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until puffed and golden and a toothpick in the cake comes out clean.
- Cool for 10 minutes, then serve warm in bowls with the sauce spooned over.
Tips
- Do not stir the batter into the sauce. The cake rises through the sauce as it bakes, and the baking sheet catches any bubbling over.
- Pure maple syrup is the point of this dessert, and a darker grade gives deeper flavor. Reheat leftovers covered at 160°C (325°F) for about 15 minutes.
Questions and answers
Why is it called pouding chômeur?
The name means unemployed person's pudding. It is said to come from hard times, when cooks made a dessert from cheap pantry ingredients, and it is still a family favorite.
Can I use a brown sugar sauce instead of maple syrup?
Yes. Many families make a sauce from brown sugar, water and butter, which tastes of caramel rather than maple.
Can I make pouding chômeur ahead of time?
It is best served warm on the day it is baked. You can bake it a few hours ahead and rewarm it gently before serving.
How long does it take to make Pouding Chômeur (Maple Cake Pudding)?
About 50 min in total: 15 min of preparation and 35 min of cooking.
How many calories are in Pouding Chômeur (Maple Cake Pudding)?
About 410 kcal per serving, with 3 g of protein, 54 g of carbohydrates and 20 g of fat. These values are estimates.
Nutrition per serving
| Calories | 410 kcal |
|---|---|
| Protein | 3 g |
| Carbohydrates | 54 g |
| Fat | 20 g |
| Fiber | 1 g |
| Sugar | 37 g |
| Sodium | 190 mg |
Estimated values, calculated from the ingredients.
