Pouding Ch�meur � This Unemployed Man�s Pudding Isn�t Cheap

This Pouding Ch�meur, which translates to �unemployed man�s pudding,� is one of your more ironically named recipes, since the main ingredients aren�t cheap. The good news is you probably don�t want to eat this more than a few times a year anyway, so it shouldn�t break the budget.

If you use a bigger baking dish than I did, and pour over all the maple cream syrup, your cake should float over a pool of what will eventually be your sauce. If you just use a deep pie dish like me, then you�ll have to serve the extra sauce later, which may work out even better anyway.

Be sure to stop between 1/2 and 1-inch from the top of your dish, because this will souffl� up, and the molten syrup will run all over. Which reminds me, be sure to use a sheet pan underneath, as neither maple syrup nor heavy cream is recommended for the bottom of your oven.

This is the perfect dessert to pair with summer fruit, and I hear that a scoop of vanilla ice cream only improves things further. So, thanks to my French-Canadian friends who suggested this recipe to follow the Poutine, and to all of you, I hope you give this a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 8 Portions:

For the syrup:

2 cups maple syrup

2 cups heavy cream

Note: I had plenty extra, so you may be able to reduce these amounts

For the batter:

3/4 cup unsalted butter, room temp

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 teaspoon vanilla

2 large eggs (use room temperature for best results)

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon fine salt

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

- 425 F. for 30 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean