“Not a brownie, a broonie. It is a cross between sticky toffee pudding and a gingerbread sponge with lots of oatmeal through it and served with lashings of butterscotch sauce. It’s great to discover an old pudding. Noted first by F Marian McNeill in the 1920s.”

Serves 8
Prep time: 30 minutes; cooking time: 45 minutes

INGREDIENTS

4 eggs

350ml buttermilk

125ml milk

250g unsalted butter

250g light brown sugar

150g molasses

350g plain flour

350g porridge oats

2 teaspoons bicarbonate of soda

Pinch of salt

5 tablespoons ground ginger

For the butterscotch sauce:

100g unsalted butter

100ml double cream

80g dark brown sugar

1 teaspoon ground ginger

METHOD

Heat the oven to 170°C / Gas Mark 5.
Whisk together the eggs, buttermilk and milk. In a separate bowl, melt together the butter, sugar and molasses until combined. Add the dry ingredients to a clean bowl and mix in the egg and milk mixture, then the butter and sugar mixture and combine.

Line an oven-proof baking dish with oiled, greaseproof paper and pour in the mixture. Bake in the oven for 45 minutes or until a cocktail stick comes out clean after testing.

To make the butterscotch sauce, bring all the ingredients together in a pot and gently melt together on a low heat on the hob. Bring to a gentle simmer then pass through a fine sieve and keep warm.

To serve, cut the broonie into desired portion sizes and pour over the butterscotch sauce. A trickle of double cream works great as well.