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Sticky Toffee Pudding is classic for a reason. This easy Sticky Toffee Pudding is a soft and gooey cake covered with a buttery warm toffee sauce and a scoop of vanilla ice cream. This luscious dessert is full of delicious rich toffee flavors. With its incredibly soft and delicious cake sweetened by dark brown sugar and dates.
After trying this sticky toffee pudding recipe, you'll find yourself craving it regularly. This classic British dessert is said to be originating from a pub in northwest England, and is popular across Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. It features a lusciously moist sponge cake, sweetened with a blend of brown sugar and finely chopped or pureed dates. It is topped with the most incredible toffee sauce.
Sticky toffee pudding is typically served with vanilla ice cream, custard, or whipped cream to complement the rich sauce.
For more cake recipes, try Tiramisu Cheesecake, and Apple Crumble Cheesecake and Biscoff Cheesecake.
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WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS
- Cake: This cake is incredibly soft and is sweetened by dark brown sugar and plum dates.
- Luscious toffee sauce: The cake is served with the most incredible toffee sauce that takes this cake to another level.
- Vanilla ice cream: The vanilla ice cream gives a perfect complement to the rich sauce and warm cake.
INGREDIENT NOTES
These are some of the key ingredients for this recipe. For a full list of ingredients, check out the recipe card below.
- Soft pitted dates: The soft pitted dates adds sweetness and lots of flavor to the cake.
- All-purpose flour: Gives a light and airy cake. I prefer using all-purpose flour with a protein amount that is between 10-11%
- Dark brown sugar: The dark brown sugar adds extra toffee flavor to the cake.
- Baking powder and baking soda: Help leaven and rise the cake, so it has light and fluffy texture.
- Egg: Take it out of the fridge 1-2 hours before baking, so it comes to room temperature. (depending how warm your kitchen is).
STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS - CAKE
Here is how to make and bake this Sticky Toffee Pudding. This recipe needs an electric hand mixer or stand mixer as well as a food processor.
The full recipe is down below in the recipe card.
Before starting preheat the oven to 180ºC/ 355ºF conventional oven. Prepare a 20x20 cm square pan with parchment paper.
STEP 1: Add pitted dates to a food processor and pulse them until they are chopped into small pieces. Add baking soda to the dates and pour over the boiling water. Let them soak in the boiled water while preparing the rest of the cake.
STEP 2: In a large bowl using an electric hand mixer and in the bowl of a stand mixer using the paddle attachment, add the butter, dark brown sugar and molasses and mix it on high speed for 3 minutes.
STEP 3: Add the eggs and vanilla extract and mix it together on low speed for about 1 minute. Stir together the all-purpose flour, baking powder and salt and add the dry ingredients it into the dough and mix until just combined.
STEP 4: Go back to the soaked dates and give it another blend until the dates and water has created a smoother paste. Add the date paste to the dough and mix it together until combined.
STEP 5: Pour the cake into the prepared pan and bake for 30-35 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean. While the cake bakes, make the toffee sauce.
STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS - TOFFEE SAUCE
STEP 1: Add the granulated sugar and water to a large saucepan or frying pan. Let it melt on medium high heat. Once it starts to turn a golden color give it a few stirs here and there so all of the sugar melts evenly.
STEP 2: Once golden amber color, take the pan off the heat and add the butter and stir it in. It’s fine if not all of the butter is fully mixed together with the caramel. Then add the molasses and mix it in.
STEP 3: Place the pan back on medium heat and add the heavy cream a little at a time. Once fully incorporated and homogeneous, turn up the heat to medium high heat, and let the sauce heat up to bubble and let it bubble for 30-60 seconds.
STEP 4: Pour the toffee sauce into a heatproof jug and set it aside until the cake is finished baking. Once the cake has finished baking, place it on a wire rack to cool down. Pour ¼ of the sauce over the cake while hot.
STEP 5: Avoid eating the cake straight out of the oven, instead, enjoy it warm. After applying the toffee sauce to the cake, let it sit for 30 minutes before serving, though you can easily leave it for up to an hour.
EXPERT BAKING TIPS
- Use a kitchen scale: My default setting for my recipes is grams. It is the most precise way of measuring out your ingredients, I therefore highly recommend using a kitchen scale.
- Don't over mix your batter: I always use a spatula after everything has mixed together, to give it one final gentle fold together. This makes sure everything in the bottom of the mixing bowl has been mixed into the batter.
- Light vs. dark baking pans: For the best result, use an aluminum baking pan, greased with butter and lined with baking paper in the bottom. Aluminum pans are light in color and therefore attract less heat. That means it bakes more gently which results in a softer cake. If you use a black baking pan it'll attract a lot more heat. That will then give a darker crust, which can result in a dryer cake.
FAQ
Yes, make the cake and toffee sauce the day before, so you only need to assemble it the next day. Once the cake is baked, omit from adding the toffee sauce on top of the cake until the next day. Store the cake well wrapped in plastic wrap once fully cooled down at room temperature. Store the toffee sauce in an airtight jar.
Before serving, preheat the oven at 175ºC/350ºF. Reheat the cake for 10 minutes. In the mean time pour the caramel sauce in a sauce pan, reheat it on low heat until more liquid. Takes only a few minutes. Pour the sauce into a jug it ready to be served.
I recommend using a cake tester or a toothpick. Once the time has passed, per the recipe, insert the cake tester in the middle of the cake and once it comes out clean, with no cake batter on it, then it's done.
STORAGE
Store the cake in an airtight container in the refrigerator when toffee sauce has been poured over. Store the toffee sauce separately in an air tight jar or container. See FAQ above for how to reheat. It's best enjoyed within a 2-3 days.
Other Cake Recipes To Try
Make sure leave a STAR REVIEW if you loved this recipe! Make sure to tag me on Instagram @juliemarieeats. To get more ideas by following me on Pinterest.
The Best Sticky Toffee Pudding
Equipment
Ingredients
CAKE
- 200 g soft pitted dates
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 200 ml boiled water
- 100 g butter room temperature
- 75 g dark brown sugar
- 2 tablespoon molasses or black treacle or dark brown syrup
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 175 g all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
TOFFEE SAUCE
- 150 g granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoon water
- 2 tablespoon molasses or black treacle or dark brown syrup
- 100 g unsalted butter cut into cubes
- 150 ml heavy cream
- Pinch of salt
- Vanilla ice cream to serve
The US customary cup measurement serves as a rough estimate, as it can have uncertainties, so for precise results, it's recommended to weigh your ingredients using a digital scale in grams. Baking is both an art and a science, which most often requires precision and accuracy.
Instructions
CAKE
- Preheat the oven at 180ºC conventional oven and prepare a 20x20 cm square baking pan with parchment paper.
- Add pitted dates to a food processor and give them a quick blend so they are chopped into small pieces. Keep the chopped dates in the food processor and add baking soda to the dates and pour over the boilling water. Let them soak in the boiled water while preparing the rest of the cake.200 g soft pitted dates, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 200 ml boiled water
- In a large bowl using an electric hand mixer or in the bowl of a stand mixer using the paddle attachment, add the butter, dark brown sugar and molasses and mix it on high speed for 3 minutes.100 g butter, 75 g dark brown sugar, 2 tablespoon molasses or black treacle
- Add the eggs and vanilla extract and mix it together on low speed for about 1 minute. It will look lumpy and won’t collect but that's okay.2 large eggs, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Stir together the all-purpose flour, baking powder and salt and pour it into the dough continuing on low speed, mixing until just combined.175 g all-purpose flour, 2 teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon salt
- Go back to the soaked dates and give it another blend until the dates and water has created a smoother date puree, about 30 seconds.
- Add the date paste to the dough and mix it together until combined. Using a rubber spatula, give the batter a gentle fold to make sure all of the ingredients have combined.
- Pour the cake into the prepared pan and bake for 30-35 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean. While the cake bakes, make the toffee sauce.
TOFFEE SAUCE
- Add the granulated sugar and water to a large saucepan or frying pan. Gently mix the sugar and water so all of the sugar is coated in water and spread it out in an even layer in the pan.150 g granulated sugar, 2 tablespoon water
- Let it melt on medium high heat. Once it starts to turn a golden color give it a few stirs here and there so all of the sugar melts evenly.
- Once golden amber color, take the pan off the heat and add the butter and stir it in. It’s fine if not all of the butter is fully mixed together with the caramel. Then add the molasses and mix it in.2 tablespoon molasses or black treacle, 100 g unsalted butter
- Place the pan back on medium heat and add the heavy cream a little at a time. Once fully incorporated and homogeneous, add a pinch of salt, and turn up the heat to medium high heat, and let the sauce heat up to bubble and let it bubble for 30-60 seconds.150 ml heavy cream, Pinch of salt
- Pour the toffee sauce into a heatproof jug and set it aside until the cake is finished baking.
- Once the cake has finished baking, place it on a wire rack to cool down. Pour ¼ of the sauce over the cake while hot.
- Avoid eating the cake straight out of the oven, instead, enjoy it warm. After applying the toffee sauce to the cake, let it sit for 30 minutes before serving, though you can easily leave it for up to an hour. Serve it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
- See FAQ above the recipe for reheating/ making the cake in advance.
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