Sticky Toffee Pudding Sundae
Put an American spin on the British classic, Sticky Toffee Pudding. Delicious, perfectly spongy cake, soaked with luscious Sticky Toffee Sauce, and topped with ice cream and whipped topping is a very special way to celebrate all the fun of summer with family and friends.
Sticky Toffee Pudding is life, so pardon me why I try to contain my excitement with this dessert. THIS treat is SO good, I haven’t even the words. It is DELICIOUS. Balanced. Not overly sweet. A grown-up dessert, yes …but both my kids gobbled it up too. Love love love love love. So let’s kick off our summer in the best way with Sticky Toffee Pudding Sundae, shall we?
Recently, I traveled to the United Kingdom, England specifically. I spent a week there, traipsing around the east coast, north of Manchester. Literally pretty much every day, I had Sticky Toffee Pudding for dessert after dinner. I have no sweet tooth, and I very rarely make dessert, let alone order one at a restaurant. But Sticky Toffee Pudding was SO good, I just had to have it. Every. Day.
And the cool thing was, each day (thus, each location, because I was traveling) was a little different. First time, it was topped with frothed cream. Second day, it was topped with ice cream. Third day, a little chocolate sauce. Each time was a different experience, and they were each spectacular.
So, my recipe here is American-spun, Sticky Toffee Pudding …in the form of a sundae. Because that’s how we roll, isn’t it?
So, what I did here to kick off our summer …is first …the cake. This cake is crucial. It may be dark in color, but it is light and divine in texture. A springy cake, perfect to soak up the toffee sauce.
Once I researched the basics of Sticky Toffee Pudding, I was surprised that a key ingredient is DATES. I hate dates …or do I… I guess I don’t. Whatever. This is NOT a “date cake”. It is a perfect cake, an ingredient for which just happens to be sweet dates, simmered to soften, then blended to make a paste that adds sweetness, color, and crucial depth of flavor.
Don’t question, just trust.
Next is the Toffee sauce, which is prepared in just 3 minutes. Unlike caramel, this sauce does not overly thicken as it cools. So don’t be afraid to make it in advance, then warm gently and spoon over everything in your life. YUM.
Finally, we top with ice cream and whipped topping or whipped cream. Boom.
So that’s it folks. Kick off your summer with this divine experience and my new FAVORITE dessert. You have to try this for yourself, you will LOVE it!
Sticky Toffee Pudding Sundae
Ingredients
For the Sticky Toffee Pudding:
- unsalted butter and granulated sugar for dusting ramekins or a cake pan
- 7 oz pitted dates finely chopped
- ½ tsp pure vanilla extract
- 4 Tbs unsalted butter softened, plus additional for coating the pan
- ¾ cup packed dark brown sugar
- 1 ½ tsp dark corn syrup
- 1 ½ tsp molasses
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp kosher salt
For the Sticky Toffee Sauce:
- 1 cup dark brown sugar
- 2 Tbs dark corn syrup
- 6 Tbs unsalted butter
- ⅔ cup heavy cream
For the Sundae:
- ice cream
- whipped topping or whipped cream
Instructions
- Heat oven to 375°F. Butter 8 small ramekins. Dust with sugar. Set aside.
- Put the dates and 1 cup water in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer 5 minutes. Use an immersion blender to blend the dates and water until smooth. Set aside to cool to room temperature.
- In a large bowl, combine the butter and brown sugar until smooth. Add the eggs, vanilla, molasses, and corn syrup, and combine. Add the date-water paste and mix well.
- Separately, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add to the butter-sugar mixture. Whip until smooth and fluffy.
- Portion the batter into the ramekins. Place ramekins on a bake sheet and bake 20-25 minutes until risen and springy to the touch. Remove from the oven.
- While the cakes are cooking, prepare the Sticky Toffee Sauce. Heat the butter, corn syrup, and brown sugar in a medium saucepan until smooth and bubbly. Gently simmer on low heat 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and carefully add the cream, stirring until smooth. (Careful, this mixture is HOT).
- Remove a cake from the ramekin onto a serving plate. Top with Sticky Toffee Sauce so it can soak into the cake. Then top with ice cream, whipped topping, and additional Sticky Toffee Sauce.
