Gooey, moist, and absolutely delicious, this Sticky Toffee Pudding is a classic holiday dessert that is super easy to throw together and tastes incredible.
While we don’t think too much of Sticky Toffee Pudding, well, I know that a lot of people know about it but have never tried it, as it is not an American dessert.
This is one dessert that we absolutely love making and one that I highly encourage you to try at least once, if not twice, or all the time because it really is just that good.
Made with dates and other pantry staple ingredients with a warm sauce poured over the cake, it really is sticky, tasty, and over-the-top delicious.
This has been called the best dessert by four people I have made it for who have never tried it. That’s why I know that it is something worth keeping around.
With a toffee flavor that comes from the brown sugar and other ingredients in the cake, it really lives up to its namesake.
Trust me, if you want something different that tastes absolutely amazing and will wow anyone you serve it to, you need to make this Sticky Toffee Pudding.
Some of my other favorite holiday dessert recipes include: Sweet Potato Cake, Pumpkin Slab Pie and Chocolate Pecan Toffee Bars.
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:
- With readily available or adaptable ingredients, this is super easy to make.
- The cake is so moist and sticky that is the perfect texture.
- The sauce on top really makes this cake what it is.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED (FULL RECIPE BELOW):
Pitted dates
Boiling water
All-purpose flour
Baking powder
Baking soda
Fine sea salt
Unsalted butter
Demerara sugar
Dark brown sugar
Eggs
Heavy cream
Vanilla extract
Whipped cream to serve, optional
HOW TO MAKE STICKY TOFFEE PUDDING:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a 9×13 baking dish with cooking spray, set aside.
- Place the chopped dates into boiling water and take off the heat. Stir the dates into the water. Let it soak for 15 minutes.
- While the dates soak, make the cake batter. Stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium-sized bowl, set aside.
- In a large bowl with an electric hand mixer, cream together the butter, demerara sugar, and brown sugar for 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing the first one in before adding the next.
- Add the dry ingredients and stir to combine, scrape the sides as needed.
- When the dates are done soaking, use an immersion blender and blend until smooth. Add to the cake batter and mix it in fully.
- Add the batter to the prepared baking dish and smooth it out. Bake for 25-30 minutes until dark golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- While the cake is baking, make the sauce. Add the butter to a medium-sized saucepan and melt it over medium-low heat. Add the heavy cream, brown sugar, and salt, and whisk to combine.
- Continue to whisk occasionally until it comes to a simmer. As soon as it begins to simmer, continuously stir for 2 minutes. Take off the heat and stir in the vanilla, set aside.
- When the cake comes out of the oven, take a fork and poke holes all over it. Pour half of the sauce all over the cake. Let it sit for 15 minutes to absorb the sauce.
- Place the broiler on high, and move an oven rack to the second position under the broiler. Place the cake under the broiler and broil for 1-2 minutes until it becomes sticky and bubbly. Make sure to watch it closely, so it doesn’t burn. We are not looking to get any color on the cake, just to caramelize the sauce on top.
- You can serve the cake now, let it cool more, or let it cool completely before serving. Serve with more sauce over each slice and whipped cream if desired.
DO I HAVE TO DRAIN THE WATER FROM THE DATES?
No, the dates will soak up the water, so they are nice and moist, which really helps this cake. So after they sit, you will just blend them together and add them to the cake batter.
WHAT IS DEMERARA SUGAR AND DO I NEED IT?
Demerara sugar is a minimally processed sugar that produces larger grains than normal sugars. It is a common ingredient in baking, especially Sticky Toffee Pudding.
It has the flavor of molasses and toffee, which is really fitting for this recipe, so that is another reason that it is the most commonly used sugar for this.
If you do not or cannot find Demerara sugar, you can substitute regular brown sugar for this recipe.
CAN I ADD ANY ADDITIONS?
If you want some contrast of texture or flavor to this recipe, you can add in some chopped nuts, such as pecans or walnuts to the cake batter, which will give it a nice crunch.
HOW TO STORE:
The sauce and cake can both be stored in separate airtight containers, or the cake can be covered with plastic wrap in the refrigerator, where they will keep for up to 5 days.
The cake can be frozen, to do that, place it in a freezer container or wrap the pan in plastic wrap and then foil where it will keep for up to 3 months, I do not recommend freezing the sauce.
To defrost, remove from the freezer into the refrigerator overnight until thawed. Warm back up in the microwave if desired before serving.
TIPS AND TRICKS:
- The whipped cream is absolutely optional for this, the recipe is so great just as is.
- If you do not have an immersion blender, you can use a regular blender or a food processor.
- The cake itself can be frozen, see above on how to do that.
- You can replace the Demerara sugar with brown sugar.
- Add in some chopped walnuts or pecans for some texture contrast.
Love trying new things or love seeing other people try new things and watching them fall in love? That is exactly what you need to do with this Sticky Toffee Pudding.
If you like this recipe you might also like:
If you’ve tried this STICKY TOFFEE PUDDING let me know in the comments how it turned out! You can follow me over on PINTEREST, INSTAGRAM OR FACEBOOK to find some more of our mouthwatering recipes!
Sticky Toffee Pudding
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 8 ounces pitted dates rough chopped
- 1 cup boiling water
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened
- ½ cup Demerara sugar
- ½ cup dark brown sugar packed
- 3 large eggs room temp
For the sauce:
- ½ cup unsalted butter
- 2 ¼ cups heavy cream
- 3 cups dark brown sugar packed
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- Whipped cream to serve optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray, set aside.
- Place the chopped dates into boiling water and take off the heat. Stir the dates into the water. Let it soak for 15 minutes.
- While the dates soak, make the cake batter. Stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium-sized bowl, set aside.
- In a large bowl with an electric hand mixer, cream together the butter, demerara sugar, and brown sugar for 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing the first one in before adding the next.
- Add the dry ingredients and stir to combine, scrape the sides as needed.
- When the dates are done soaking, use an immersion blender and blend until smooth. Add to the cake batter and mix it in fully.
- Add the batter to the prepared baking dish and smooth it out. Bake for 25-30 minutes until dark golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- While the cake is baking, make the sauce. Add the butter to a medium-sized saucepan and melt it over medium-low heat. Add the heavy cream, brown sugar, and salt, and whisk to combine.
- Continue to whisk occasionally until it comes to a simmer. As soon as it begins to simmer, continuously stir for 2 minutes. Take off the heat and stir in the vanilla, set aside.
- When the cake comes out of the oven, take a fork and poke holes all over it. Pour half of the sauce all over the cake. Let it sit for 15 minutes to absorb the sauce.
- Place the broiler on high, and move an oven rack to the second position under the broiler. Place the cake under the broiler and broil for 1-2 minutes until it becomes sticky and bubbly. Make sure to watch it closely, so it doesn’t burn. We are not looking to get any color on the cake, just to caramelize the sauce on top.
- You can serve the cake now, let it cool more, or let it cool completely before serving. Serve with more sauce over each slice and whipped cream if desired.
Comments & Reviews
Penny Bunch says
What is demerara sugar?
Dana DeVolk says
This question was answered in the post:
WHAT IS DEMERARA SUGAR AND DO I NEED IT?
Demerara sugar is a minimally processed sugar that produces larger grains than normal sugars. It is a common ingredient in baking, especially Sticky Toffee Pudding.
It has the flavor of molasses and toffee, which is really fitting for this recipe, so that is another reason that it is the most commonly used sugar for this.
If you do not or cannot find Demerara sugar, you can substitute regular brown sugar for this recipe.