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My Easy Sticky Toffee Pudding is a decadent date spongy cake served with a homemade toffee sauce. This classic British dessert gets even better when served with hot custard, perfectly balancing the sweetness with a creamy, comforting touch. 

Pouring toffee sauce over sticky toffee pudding



This is the only sticky toffee pudding recipe you need and it has been a hit here since 2014. While the traditional ingredients sometimes include black treacle (similar to molasses), I’ve crafted this recipe without it to ensure it’s accessible to bakers worldwide. 

Table of contents


Sticky Toffee Pudding Ingredients:

For the pudding:

  • Medjool dates 
  • Unsalted butter 
  • Light or dark brown sugar
  • Large eggs
  • Vanilla extract
  • Flour
  • Baking powder
  • Baking soda

For the toffee sauce:

  • Light or dark brown sugar
  • Heavy cream (double cream)
  • Unsalted butter
A spoonful of sticky toffee pudding


Sticky Toffee Sponge Cake


When I say this cake is incredibly soft and moist, I’m not exaggerating. Imagine a warm, soft cake fresh from the oven, pour over the toffee sauce and creamy custard. It truly creates the ultimate dessert trifecta that makes up the perfect bite.


Dates in Sticky Toffee Pudding


Soft Medjool dates work the best for this recipe. I’ve seen recipes call to blend or puree the dates but I like to have chunks of the dates in the batter and pudding (see picture below).


Soaking Dates


It’s best to soak the chopped dates in very hot water. This helps soften them, and they melt into the pudding.

A sticky toffee pudding cut in a half


Brown Sugar in Sticky Toffee Pudding


You may find recipes for sticky date pudding that vary in color from light to dark, depending on the type of sugar used. Light brown sugar creates a lighter cake, while dark brown sugar gives it a deeper color. You can see this example in my pictures. Dark brown sugar was used in the pudding below, and light brown sugar was used in the pudding above.

In the U.K., people sometimes use a combination of light or demerara sugar to make the pudding darker and richer. As mentioned above, my recipe does not include treacle, making it easy to make for everyone worldwide.

Sticky toffee pudding on a bed of English custard


Sticky Toffee Pudding Toffee Sauce


The toffee sauce is an integral part of the dessert (it’s in the name, after all). You simply can’t have one without the other—the pudding and the sauce. While similar to caramel sauce, toffee sauce contains more butter, giving it a richer, buttery flavor. You can also add a touch of salt.


I recommend using a heavy-bottomed, thick-sided saucepan to ensure even heat distribution and prevent burning. Stirring the sauce often prevents it from sticking to the bottom—always over low heat.


Ramekins for Baking


The best baking dish for this recipe is four 4-ounce (118 ml) ramekins, each measuring 3 1/2 inches (9 cm) in diameter. It’s very important to grease and then flour your muffin tin well to ensure the puddings release easily after baking.


Sticky Toffee Pudding with Custard


I like to do something different to balance the sweetness of the date cake and toffee sauce—I serve it with hot English custard. Vanilla ice cream is also an option. The creaminess helps cut through the sweetness of the toffee sauce, and all three components work beautifully together.

Traditional English Custard Recipe

  • 2 ¼ cups (532 ml) whole milk
  • 3 large egg yolks, room temperature
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch/cornflour
  • 1/3 cup (75 grams) granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  1. To a medium saucepan, add the milk over medium heat.
  2. While the milk is heating, add the egg yolks to a heatproof mixing bowl. Whisk in the cornstarch/flour sugar and vanilla until smooth. 
  3. Once the milk is hot and steaming (do not boil) turn off the heat. Slowly drizzle while whisking, a little of the hot milk into the egg mixture until smooth. This will temper the eggs and stop them from curdling or cooking. 
  4. Slowly pour the tempered egg mix into the pan while whisking until thickened (without any heat). It is the optimal thickness when it coats the back of a wooden spoon. If you do get lumps, simply run it through a sieve.


If you’re a fan of creamy custard, I also use it in Berry Custard Tart, Rhubarb and Custard and Sticky Toffee Pudding Trifle.

Yield: 8 puddings

Easy Sticky Toffee Pudding

Sticky toffee pudding and English custard on a plate with toffee sauce

A moist date sponge cake, covered in a toffee sauce and served with English custard.

Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 1 hour

Ingredients

  • For the pudding:
  • 1 cup (135 grams or about 9) medjool dates, pitted and finely chopped
  • ¾ cup (150 grams) very hot water
  • 6 tablespoons (88 grams) unsalted butter, softened
  • ⅔ cup (112 grams) light or dark brown sugar 2 large eggs, room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • ¾ cup (130 grams) all-purpose/plain flour
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • For the toffee sauce:
  • 1 cup (150 grams) light or dark brown sugar
  • ¾ cup (96 grams) heavy/double cream
  • 6 tablespoons (88 grams) unsalted butter
  • For the custard:
  • 2 ¼ cups (532 ml) whole milk
  • 3 large egg yolks, room temperature
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch/cornflour
  • 1/3 cup (75 grams) granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

  1. For the pudding:
  2. Preheat oven to 325°F/160°C.
  3. To a heatproof dish, add the dates and hot water, stir to combine. Let sit for a 30 minutes to soften and cool.
  4. To a mixing bowl add the butter and sugar and beat with a mixer (or stand mixer) until creamy, scraping the sides of the bowl as needed. Beat in the eggs 1 at a time until well combined and smooth.
  5. Add the dates (with the water) and vanilla, mix well. Add the flour, baking powder and baking soda, mix. Then switch to stirring to fully incorporate the flour and not over mix.
  6. Grease four (4 ounce/118 ml/3 ½-inch/9 cm in diameter) ramekins with butter and place on a baking/sheet tray.  Fill ¾ full and bake for 45-50 minutes until they feel spongey to the touch (not sticky) and a toothpick comes out clean when inserted in the center.
  7. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the ramekins. Run a knife around the edge and turn the cakes out to cool.
  1. For the toffee sauce:
  2. To a medium saucepan over medium heat add the sugar, butter and half of the cream. Bring to a low simmer  until it bubbles. Stir in the rest of the cream, stirring often. Cook while stirring until it thickens. Serve poured over the pudding.
  3. For the custard:
  4. To a medium saucepan, add the milk over medium heat.
  5. While the milk is heating, add the egg yolks to a heatproof mixing bowl. Whisk in the cornstarch/flour sugar and vanilla until smooth. 
  6. Once the milk is hot and steaming (do not boil) turn off the heat. Slowly drizzle while whisking a little of the hot milk into the egg mixture. This will temper the eggs and stop them from curdling or cooking. 
  7. Slowly pour the tempered egg mix into the pan while whisking until thickened (without any heat). It is the optimal thickness when it coats the back of a wooden spoon. If you do get lumps, simply run it through a sieve.

Notes

This will dictate if your cake is light or dark

Nutrition Information

Yield

4

Serving Size

1
Amount Per Serving Calories 716Total Fat 53gSaturated Fat 33gTrans Fat 1gUnsaturated Fat 18gCholesterol 195mgSodium 295mgCarbohydrates 88gFiber 2gSugar 86gProtein 8g

This nutrition calculation is provided by Nutronix that is only a guideline and not intended for any particular diet.

© Janette
Cuisine: British / Category: Dessert