Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas Boil the kettle. In a small jug, cover the dates with 150ml of boiling kettle water, making sure they’re submerged.,

Grease a 20cm x 20cm square baking tin and line with greaseproof paper. Pour in the golden syrup, making sure it covers the base, then dot over 25g of butter.,

Peel the bananas, slice into rounds and arrange in a single layer over the syrup and butter, then set aside.,

Pour the dates and their soaking water into a food processor, add 75g each of the butter and sugar, and blitz until combined, then crack in the eggs, add the flour, and blitz again.,

Gently pour the mixture into the tin over the bananas, then bake for 35 minutes, or until golden and an inserted skewer comes out clean.,

To make a sauce, put the remaining 75g each of butter and sugar and the cream into a small pan and simmer until slightly thickened and a deep gold in colour, gently swirling the pan occasionally, then pour into a serving jug.,

Carefully turn out the pud onto a nice board or serving platter and peel away the greaseproof to reveal the sticky bananas. Slice, and serve warm with ice cream and a drizzle of the sauce.