Ingredients

• 350g dried figs (see notes)
• 1 granny smith apple, peeled, cored, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
• 125g butter, softened
• 1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups self-raising flour
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg, plus extra to sprinkle
• 250g tub mascarpone, to serve

Butterscotch sauce

• 3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 300ml thickened cream
• 75g butter, chopped
• 1 teaspoon finely grated orange rind

Method

• Step 1 Preheat oven to 180C/160C fan-forced. Grease a 6cm-deep, 20cm (base) round cake pan. Line base and side with baking paper.
• Step 2 Make butterscotch sauce. Combine sugar, cream and butter in a small saucepan. Stir over low heat for 3 to 4 minutes or until sugar has dissolved. Increase heat to medium. Bring to the boil. Simmer for 5 to 7 minutes or until thickened slightly. Remove from heat. Stir in orange rind.
• Step 3 Cut 10 figs in half horizontally. Arrange figs, cut-side down, over base of prepared pan. Drizzle 1/3 cup butterscotch sauce over figs in pan. Reserve remaining sauce in a heatproof jug.
• Step 4 Combine apple, remaining figs and 1 cup hot water in a small saucepan. Bring to the boil over medium heat. Remove from heat. Stir in bicarb. Stand for 5 minutes. Transfer mixture to a food processor. Process until almost smooth. Cool for 10 minutes.
• Step 5 Meanwhile, using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar for 5 minutes or until light and fluffy. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Sift flour and nutmeg over mixture. Stir to combine. Add cooled fig mixture, stirring to combine. Spoon mixture over figs in pan, carefully spreading to cover. Bake for 1 hour or until a skewer inserted into the centre of pudding comes out clean. Cool in pan for 15 minutes.
• Step 6 Microwave reserved sauce on HIGH (100%) for 30 seconds or until warm. Turn pudding onto a serving plate. Drizzle ½ the sauce over pudding. Sprinkle mascarpone with extra nutmeg. Serve with pudding and remaining sauce (see notes).