Try your hand at making an Irish favorite this St. Patrick’s Day with our scrumptious dessert recipe.
While sticky toffee pudding originated in the United Kingdom, it’s quite popular in Ireland as well, and it’s easy to understand why. This dark, sweet cake drizzled with a rich toffee sauce is a delightful treat, particularly when served warm. Serve it a-la-mode if you’d like, or plain and swimming in syrup. Either way, you’re sure to enjoy this dessert from across the pond.
Ingredients for the cake:
8 oz pitted medjool dates
1 cup boiling water
⅓ cup butter, room temperature
¼ cup brown sugar, packed
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 eggs, room temperature
2 tablespoons molasses
1 ⅔ cup all-purpose flour
¼ teaspoon salt
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
Ingredients for the toffee sauce:
½ cup heavy cream
½ cup butter
¾ cup brown sugar
⅛ teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Instructions:
Preheat your oven to 350°F.
Grease two muffin tins with butter and set them aside.
Remove the pits from your dates and weigh out 8 ounces.
Put your dates in a blender or food processor and blend until thoroughly mushed.
Add your boiling water to the dates and set it aside, leaving it in the blender or food processor.
Using a hand mixer or stand mixer, cream your butter and sugar until smooth and fluffy.
Add your eggs to the creamed butter mixture and beat until combined.
Pour your molasses and vanilla extract into the butter mixture and beat until combined.
In a separate bowl, sift together your flour, baking powder, and salt. Set it aside.
Add your baking soda to the date mixture and pulse to combine, making a chunky but even mixture.
Pour the date mixture into your butter mixture and beat until just combined.
Add your flour mixture to the batter and mix until combined.
Pour the batter into your prepared muffin tins, spreading it evenly.
Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until a fork inserted in the center comes out clean.
While your sticky toffee puddings are baking, you can make the toffee sauce.
In a large saucepan, melt your butter.
Once melted, add your brown sugar, heavy cream, salt, and vanilla extract to the butter. Whisk to combine.
Whisk the mixture constantly, on medium heat, until the sugar has dissolved and the sauce becomes thick and smooth. This should take about 10 minutes.
Once your sticky toffee puddings and sauce are ready, allow everything 10 minutes to cool before serving.
Spoon a generous portion of toffee sauce on each pudding and enjoy it fresh from the oven or warmed up.
