Sticky Date Pudding
Sticky date pudding is a dessert consisting of a very moist sponge cake, made with finely chopped dates, covered in a toffee sauce and often served with a vanilla custard or vanilla ice-cream. It is considered a British classic by various culinary experts,
Prep Time 30 minutes mins
Cook Time 40 minutes mins
Total Time 1 hour hr 10 minutes mins
Servings 8 servings
Calories 300 kcal
- 400g fresh dates, pitted, coarsely chopped
- 375ml (1 1/2 cups) boiling water
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 125g butter, at room temperature
- 215g (1 cup) caster sugar
- 3 eggs
- 225g (1 1/2 cups) self-raising flour
- 1/2 tsp mixed spice
- 1/4 tsp ground cloves
- Double cream, to serve
Butterscotch Sauce
- 200g (1 cup, firmly packed) brown sugar
- 250ml (1 cup) thickened cream
- 60g butter
- 2 tbsp golden syrup
Preheat the oven to 180C/160C fan forced. Spray a large 6 pan muffin tin Brush a round 22cm (base measurement) cake pan with melted butter, to grease. Line the base of the pan with baking paper.
Place the dates and water in a medium saucepan over high heat. Bring the mixture to the boil. Stir in the bicarb. Set aside for 10 minutes to cool slightly. Stir in the ginger.
Using an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar in a bowl until pale and creamy. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in date mixture, flour, mixed spice and cloves until well combined.
Pour mixture into the prepared pan (the mixture will be quite wet). Bake for 1 hour or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean. Use a skewer to pierce holes in the hot cake.
For the sauce, stir sugar, cream, butter and golden syrup in a saucepan over medium heat for 3-4 minutes or until smooth. Bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer for 1-2 minutes or until thickened.
Pour 125ml (1/2 cup) of the sauce over the cake. Set aside for 10 minutes to absorb. Run a butter knife around the pan to remove. Cut cake into wedges. Serve with cream and remaining sauce.