My mother, bless her big ol' heart, has a thing about sweets. This lady has been known to sit down in one sitting and eat a whole sugar pie; bit by glorious bit, or even spend an evening dipping some Pontiac Home Bakery bread in a vat of maple syrup (my parents buy it by the gallon!). So, it is of no surprise that my momma makes "Pudding Chomeur". For those of you who are not familiar with this sickly sweet concoction, it is named "Welfare Pudding" (literal translation) due to the fact that back in the day when money was tight, momma's and grandma's used to whip up this dessert as maple syrup was cheaper and more plentiful than sugar. Of course, the recipe has changed over the years, and has been adapted, but it still super duper! I have been known to use my momma's recipe on quite a few occasions, and have decided to put it on my new Harvest Stimulus Menu at the Five Fishermen. This dessert is always a big hit, and we are serving it with Dafydd's Buttermilk Ice Cream....yum! Whenever I am feeling down and out, or need a bowl of comfort, I usually whip up a batch, and I hope that you do too.

Pudding Chomeur A La Lavallée

the liquid

1 1/2 cup water
1 cup Maple Syrup
1 1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tbsp flour

Mix all the ingredients in a pot and bring to a boil. Pour into a deep cake pan or pudding pan.

THE Cake

1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cup flour
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
3/4 cup milk
pinch of salt
splash of vanilla

Cream the butter and sugar together; add the eggs one at a time. Add flour and baking powder, then milk, vanilla and salt. Pour batter over the liquid and bake in a 375F oven for 30-40 minutes.