Sticky Toffee Pudding Recipe With Dates (and How to Make It Ahead)

This sticky toffee pudding recipe pairs a soft, dark sponge, made with dates soaked in boiling water and bicarbonate of soda, with a toffee sauce of butter, brown sugar and cream. It serves 8 and takes about 1¼ hours. Below: which dates to use, why they are soaked, individual puddings, and how to make it ahead, freeze and reheat it.

What is sticky toffee pudding?

Sticky toffee pudding, also known as sticky date pudding, is a moist, dark sponge made with chopped dates and brown sugar, served warm under a toffee sauce of butter, brown sugar and cream. Francis Coulson is widely credited with popularising it in the 1970s at the Sharrow Bay hotel on Ullswater, in the Lake District. Where it was first made is disputed; Felicity Cloake, writing in the Guardian, suggests it probably has Canadian origins.

Which dates are best for sticky toffee pudding?

Most soft dried dates work, as the soak softens them further. Here are four options from our dates range:

To stone Medjool, slit them lengthways and lift out the stone, as our Medjool dates guide explains, or browse all our Medjool dates. Plain dates left from a Christmas box can go in too, as our Christmas dates gift guide suggests, but leave out stuffed and chocolate dates, which are usually filled with nuts (see our chocolate dates guide). Our guide to types of dates covers other varieties.

Why soak the dates with bicarbonate of soda?

Most recipes soak the dates in hot liquid with bicarbonate of soda. Joy of Baking says it softens the dates' tough skins, as does a UK supermarket's recipe, and Country Life says it helps break them down. Our chopped dates page suggests 10 minutes' soaking, then a light mash. The bicarbonate stays in the batter, too: America's Test Kitchen notes that it promotes browning, by making batters more alkaline, and gives lift only with acidic ingredients. So it probably deepens the sponge's colour, while self-raising flour gives a reliable rise.

Sticky toffee pudding recipe (serves 8)

Prep: 30 minutes, including 10 minutes' soaking and 10 minutes' cooling. Bake: 30–35 minutes. Total: about 1¼ hours, including 10 minutes for the sauce to soak in. You need a 20cm square cake tin and a saucepan.

Ingredients

• Dates: 200g chopped dates (a fifth of a 1kg bag), or pitted or stoned Medjool dates, chopped; 1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda; and 250ml boiling water.
• Sponge: 75g unsalted butter, diced, plus extra for greasing; 150g brown sugar; 2 large eggs, beaten; 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional); 175g self-raising flour; and a pinch of salt.
• Toffee sauce: 100g unsalted butter, 150g brown sugar, 250ml double cream and ¼ teaspoon salt.
• To serve: pouring cream, custard or vanilla ice cream.

We sell the dates and sugar; you will also need butter, eggs, flour and cream. Light or dark brown sugar both work, as in America's Test Kitchen's recipe; the exact type of ours is printed on the pack. It dissolves in the warm dates, so there is no creaming.

Method

1. Get ready. Heat the oven to 180°C (160°C fan), gas mark 4. Butter a 20cm square cake tin and line the base with baking paper.
2. Soak the dates. Put the dates and bicarbonate of soda in a large heatproof bowl, checking for stray stone fragments, and pour over the boiling water; it will foam a little. Leave for at least 10 minutes, until soft, then mash roughly with a fork.
3. Add the butter and sugar. Stir them into the hot dates until the butter melts and the sugar dissolves, then leave for about 10 minutes, until just warm, so the eggs don't start to set.
4. Mix. Beat in the eggs and vanilla, then fold in the flour and salt until no dry flour is left. The batter will be runny.
5. Bake. Pour the batter into the tin and bake for 30–35 minutes, until risen and springy and a skewer pushed into the middle comes out clean. A smear of date is fine; wet batter is not.
6. Make the sauce. While it bakes, stir the butter, sugar and cream in a saucepan over a low heat until the butter melts and the sugar dissolves, then simmer for 3–5 minutes, stirring, until glossy and slightly thickened. Stir in the salt. Hot sauce can burn, so keep children away and cool it before tasting.
7. Soak and serve. Prick the hot sponge all over with a skewer, spoon over a third of the sauce and leave for 10 minutes to soak in. Cut into 8 and serve warm with the rest of the sauce and cream, custard or ice cream.

Allergens: this pudding contains wheat (gluten), eggs and milk. Our chopped dates are usually dusted with a little rice flour, so check their pack label. Our pitted dates and Al-Quds Medjool pages list none of the 14 major allergens, but check every label, including may-contain warnings. GOV.UK lists the 14 allergens that must be labelled on prepacked food.

Individual sticky toffee puddings

Butter eight 175–200ml pudding moulds or ramekins, line the bases with baking paper and stand them on a baking tray. Fill them two-thirds full and bake at the same temperature for about 20–25 minutes, checking smaller ones after 15 minutes, until risen and firm and a skewer comes out clean. Loosen with a knife, turn out and spoon over the sauce.

How to make sticky toffee pudding ahead

It is best on the day it is baked, Nigella Lawson's team says, but you can make it ahead if you keep the sponge and sauce apart until serving, as Felicity Cloake advises. Follow the Food Standards Agency's leftovers advice:

• Up to 48 hours ahead: cool the sponge, then cover and refrigerate it within two hours, with the sauce in a covered container. The FSA advises eating leftovers within 48 hours or freezing them.
• To freeze: wrap the sponge as soon as it has cooled, whole or in portions, freeze the sauce separately in a lidded container, and label both. For quality, the FSA says frozen baked goods are best within 3–4 months; Nigella Lawson's site gives up to 3 months for toffee sauce. Defrost in the fridge overnight and use within 24 hours of fully defrosting, as the FSA's freezing advice says.
• To reheat: the FSA advises reheating leftovers only once, until steaming hot throughout rather than just warm. Reheat the whole pudding under foil at 180°C (160°C fan), gas 4: Felicity Cloake allows about 20 minutes, but from the fridge it may need longer, so check the middle. Microwave portions following the maker's guidance, and heat the sauce in a pan, stirring, until bubbling.

Variations

• Medjool date paste: our suggestion for a smooth sponge. Swap the dates for 200g of plain Madina Medjool Date Paste and use 200ml of boiling water, as the paste is moist. Whisk it into the water with the bicarbonate, then carry on from step 3. Our date paste guide also loosens paste with hot liquid before baking; find it in our date paste and syrup range.
• Date syrup in the sauce: some recipes add a spoonful of golden syrup to the sauce, and SBS Food suggests date syrup in many recipes where you would use golden syrup. So stir 1 tablespoon of Basra Date Syrup into the sauce with the cream, for more date flavour (see our date syrup guide).
• Tea-soaked dates: soak the dates in hot black tea instead of water. Our chopped dates page suggests water or tea, and one supermarket recipe uses a chai teabag.

Frequently asked questions

What are the best dates for sticky toffee pudding?

Soft dried dates that are already stoned, such as chopped or pitted dates, are the easy choice: they soften in the hot water and bicarbonate and mash easily. Nigella Lawson's team says most packet dates are fine unless they are very dry and chewy. Medjool are softer still; weigh them after stoning. Whichever you use, check for stray stone fragments.

Can you make sticky toffee pudding the day before?

Yes. Cool the sponge, then cover and refrigerate it within two hours, keeping the sauce separate; the FSA advises eating leftovers within 48 hours. Reheat it once only, until steaming hot throughout, under foil in the oven or in portions in the microwave, then heat the sauce until bubbling and pour it over.

Can you freeze sticky toffee pudding?

Yes. Freeze the cooled sponge promptly, whole or in portions, and the sauce separately, well wrapped and labelled. The FSA says frozen baked goods are best within 3–4 months, which is about quality rather than safety. Defrost in the fridge overnight, use within 24 hours of fully defrosting and reheat only once, until steaming hot.

Is sticky toffee pudding the same as sticky date pudding?

Yes: sticky date pudding is another name for the same dessert, a moist date sponge with toffee sauce. Recipes vary in their sugar, how finely they chop the dates and whether the sponge is baked or steamed, but most share soaked dates and a sauce of butter, brown sugar and cream.

What do you serve with sticky toffee pudding?

Custard and vanilla ice cream are the usual partners, and single or pouring cream works too; Felicity Cloake also suggests crème fraîche or Greek yoghurt. Serve it warm, with extra sauce in a jug. For anyone with an allergy, check the labels: custard and ice cream usually contain milk, and some contain eggs.