By Sarah Kim Watchorn
For the pudding; Grease a 2-litre pudding mould and pop it onto a baking tray. Heat the oven to 160°C.
Beat the butter and sugar in a freestanding mixer until light and fluffy.
Mix the flour, spices and ginger together in a bowl then beat into the butter mix with the eggs.
Add the dates and 100ml of water to a medium saucepan. Simmer for 2-3 minutes until the dates have softened.
Stir in the bicarbonate of soda and it will become foamy, this is why you need a slightly larger saucepan.
Fold this into the rest of the ingredients along with the sour cream and a pinch of salt.
Pour into the greased pudding mould and bake for 1 hour until fully cooked, risen and golden.
For the butterscotch sauce, combine all the ingredients in a small saucepan, except the white chocolate, stir together and bring to the boil, reduce the heat a little, simmer for a minute or two until it has thickened, then stir through the white chocolate until melted.
To serve, arrange the warm pudding on a plate and pour over the sauce.