Vegan Sticky Toffee Pudding is the ultimate crowd-pleasing dessert! Gently spiced sticky date pudding recipe with compulsory, rich toffee sauce! Proper comfort food, stick to your ribs British pud!
I might be a bit biased but this is the best vegan sticky toffee pudding recipe I've ever tasted.
It is one of those desserts you reach for when in need of a little bit of comfort after lovely vegan Sunday lunch and despite already feeling full and ready for a bit of a nap.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not encouraging gluttony here but there is definitely time and place for this ultimate comfort food British pudding, especially when shared with your loved ones.
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✔️ Why should you make it
- Proper comfort food, stick to your ribs British pud
- Vegan, dairy and egg free, you can omit nuts for nut-free version
- Can be made gluten-free if required
- Crowd-pleasing, easy to make recipe
- Rich & gently spiced, perfect colder months dessert
- Only standard ingredients required, no flax egg in this one
- Easy traybake recipe, no need for individual moulds
- It reheats well so can be made in advance
🥘 Ingredients & substitutions
Vegan Sticky Toffee Pudding
Dried, pitted dates - Any dried dates can be used here just make sure they're pitted (their stones have been removed). My favourite ones are Medjool dates for their exceptional softness, sweetness and stickiness but use whatever you've got.
Self-raising or gluten-free self raising flour - For that extra lift. If you don't have it simply substitute it with equal amount of plain (all-purpose) flour (gluten-free if needed) + 2.5 teaspoons of baking powder (ensure it's gluten-free as well).
I have baked this pudding successfully with both, regular and gluten free flours. I've used Doves Farm gluten-free self-raising flour (not sponsored) to bake this pudding and it worked a treat.
Bicarbonate of Soda (Baking Soda) - Not only does it soften dried dates and makes them easier to blend but will also help our pudding rise. Make sure to use gluten-free one if required.
Soya (soy) milk - It's my go to plant milk when it comes to baking but feel free to use any other unsweetened plant milk of your choice.
Brown Sugar - I use light brown sugar here but you could also try dark brown variety for even deeper flavour.
Rapeseed oil (cold-pressed) / Light olive oil - These are neutral tasting oils I like to use in my baking. Feel free to use different one as long as it's neutral.
Vanilla Extract - Just a little flavour enhancer.
Mixed Spice - Not something that was used in the traditional sticky toffee pudding but I think it adds that autumnal quality to the pudding. Feel free to substitute it with mixture of cinnamon, ginger and/or nutmeg if you want or just leave it out completely.
Pecans - I love a little of a nutty crunch in my pudding. Feel free to use walnuts instead or leave nuts out altogether for nut-free dessert.
Vegan Toffee Sauce
Vegan Block Butter - In the UK I use Flora Plant (Unsalted), Naturli or Stork (block only as tub is not vegan).
Brown Sugar - Either light or dark is fine.
Black Treacle or Molasses - Adds depth of flavour and richness to the sauce.
Soya cream - I use single cream but you could also use double plant cream. Elmlea Plant Double (UK) is really nice.
🍽 Equipment
Rectangular springform cake tin 28cm/18cm (11inch/8inch) - I'm all for making your life simpler and when it comes to baking I'm all about traybakes. This springform cake tin with leakage protection is my favourite and one I use all the time.
You could also use your favourite ceramic dish of similar size for this pudding. Simply make sure to grease it quite liberally with vegan butter.
Baking Paper - To line the bottom of your springform cake. If you're using ceramic baking dish for more of a rustic feel you should be fine with simply buttering your dish.
Chopping Board - For chopping dates.
Chef's Knife - as above.
Large Mixing Bowl - Essential for mixing your pudding batter.
Medium Saucepan - For preparing toffee sauce.
Hand/Stick/Immersion Blender - For pureeing your dates mixture with all the other wet ingredients.
💭 Top tips
- Try not to overmix the pudding mixture. You don't want to incorporate too much air into the batter as it will cause rapid rise of your pudding in the oven followed by equally rapid fall which you'd like to avoid.
- Don't worry about the lumps in the batter too much. As long as there are no visible signs of flour you're ready to pour your batter into baking tin and bake.
- Once you've mixed your batter and poured it into baking tin get it into preheated oven as soon as possible to ensure nice rise.
- If you don't have self-raising flour simply make your own by adding 2.5 teaspoon of baking powder to 200 grams / 7.05 ounces of plain (all-purpose) flour.
- Feel free to pour half of the sauce (or more) over the entire sticky toffee pudding once out of the oven and has cooled a bit but make sure to keep enough to serve with each individual portion. You can even poke some holes in the cake so that the sauce soaks into it.
- I found the amount of the sauce in this recipe adequate but feel free to double it if you want, you can always freeze the leftovers.
- Vegan sticky toffee pudding is by far best served slightly warm with generous helping of toffee sauce.
🥡 Storing and freezing vegan sticky toffee pudding
Leftover vegan sticky toffee pudding and toffee sauce can be kept in the fridge for up to 5 days.
The sauce will thicken quite considerably once cooled but once reheated it will come back to its original consistency.
As it's best served warm, I usually simply reheat a portion of pudding and sauce in the microwave for approximately 20 seconds. It works really well and is by far the quickest way of getting that leftover pud in my belly.
Vegan sticky toffee pudding is freezer friendly for up to 3 months. Ensure it's completely cool and cover it well for freezing. I would recommend freezing pudding and sauce separately.
Defrost it at room temperature if to be consumed on the same day or overnight in the fridge. Sauce (once defrosted) can be reheated in the microwave or in the pan on the hob.
🍴 Serving suggestions
Vegan sticky toffee pudding is best served slightly warm with generous scoop of vegan vanilla ice cream or my plain banana nice cream and generous amount of toffee sauce (of course).
Vegan cream or even custard (not for me on this occasion) will work too.
I also like to sprinkle over some more chopped pecans or walnuts but feel free to leave these out.
❓ FAQs
Yes you can. Both pudding and sauce reheat really well and take literally seconds in the microwave but you could also reheat the pudding in the low oven at 160C/325F until just warm and the sauce in a saucepan on the hob.
Yes. Traditional, British sticky toffee pudding is made with dates and in countries like Australia and New Zealand is even known as sticky date pudding.
Yes. Make sure your pudding has cooled completely, wrap it well and freeze for up to 3 months. You can freeze it whole or in individual portions. It's best to freeze toffee sauce separately. Defrost the pudding at room temperature or overnight in the fridge before reheating it in the microwave or the oven. Sauce can be reheated in the microwave or in a pan on the hob.
Yes it is, simply ensure you use your favourite gluten-free self raising flour blend and gluten-free bicarbonate soda. In absence of self-raising flour simply use gluten-free plain flour + gluten-free baking powder (see Ingredients and substitutions).
🔪 How to make Vegan Sticky Toffee Pudding?
Ingredient quantities & detailed instructions to be found in recipe card at the bottom of the post.
Preheat the oven to 180C/350G/Gas Mark 4 and prepare your baking tin/dish by lightly greasing it and lining with baking paper.
Put roughly chopped dates in a small bowl with baking soda and cover with 200ml (0.85 cup) of boiling water. Let it sit for 10 minutes or so.
In a large bowl mix or sift together self-raising flour and mixed spice.
In a blender mix together dates mixture (including all of the soaking water), soya milk, oil, vanilla extract and sugar until smooth.
Pour the wet mixture over the flour with mixed spice and mix in gently, using nice folding motion until all the flour has been incorporated. Try not to overmix your pudding batter.
Fold in some chopped pecans or walnuts if using and pour the batter into prepared baking tin.
Bake your pudding in preheated oven for approximately 25-30 minutes.
While sticky toffee pudding is baking prepare your toffee sauce.
Add brown sugar, vegan butter and treacle/molasses (if using) into a medium saucepan.
Let these melt slowly on low heat stirring until you get nice and smooth looking sauce.
Pour in vegan cream and stir it in, let the mixture come to a gentle simmer for couple of minutes and take the sauce off the heat.
Take your cake out of the oven and check whether it's baked with a skewer. Your sticky toffee pudding is done if the skewer inserted into centre comes out clean.
Let sticky toffee pudding cool slightly in the tin before serving.
Have you made my Vegan Sticky Toffee Pudding?
Please consider giving it ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating in recipe card below and sharing your thoughts in the comments.
😋 More delicious traybake recipes
Vegan Chocolate Banana Cake
Gingerbread Cake (Traybake) - Vegan
Raspberry Cake (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Dorset Apple Cake (Traybake)
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📋 Recipe
Vegan Sticky Toffee Pudding
Equipment
Ingredients
Pudding
- 200 g dried dates, stones removed & roughly chopped see notes
- 1 teaspoon bicarbonate soda (baking soda) gluten free if necessary
- 200 ml boiling water
- 100 ml soya milk see notes
- 80 ml sunflower or rapeseed oil see notes
- 150 g brown sugar either light or dark is fine
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 200 g self-raising flour, gluten-free if necessary see notes
- 1 teaspoon mixed spice see notes
- 75 g pecans optional
Toffee Sauce
- 100 g unsalted vegan butter I use Flora Plants or Naturli
- 150 g brown sugar (light or dark)
- 150 ml single soya cream
- 1 tablespoon treacle (molasses) optional
Instructions
Sticky Toffee Pudding
- Preheat the oven to 180C/350G/Gas Mark 4 and prepare your baking tin/dish by lightly greasing it and lining with baking paper. I use rectangular cake tin 28x18cm/11x8inch.
- Put roughly chopped dates in a small bowl with baking soda and cover with 200ml (0.85 cup) of boiling water. Let it sit for 10 minutes or so.
- In a large bowl mix or sift together self-raising flour and mixed spice. I like to use a small whisk here
- In a blender mix together dates mixture (including all of the soaking water), soya milk, oil, vanilla extract and sugar until smooth.
- Pour the wet mixture over the flour with mixed spice and mix in gently, using nice folding motion until all the flour has been incorporated. Try not to overmix your pudding batter.
- Fold in some chopped pecans or walnuts if using and pour the batter into prepared baking tin.
- Bake your pudding in preheated oven for approximately 25-30 minutes until skewer inserted into centre comes out clean.
- Let sticky toffee pudding cool slightly in the tin before serving.
Toffee Sauce
- While the sticky toffee pudding is baking prepare your toffee sauce.
- Add brown sugar, vegan butter and treacle/molasses (if using) into a medium saucepan.
- Let these melt slowly on low heat stirring until you get nice and smooth looking sauce.
- Pour in vegan cream and stir it in, let the mixture come to a gentle simmer for couple of minutes and take the sauce off the heat.
- Serve pudding with generous amount of toffee sauce and some vegan ice cream!
Notes
- Nutritional information is approximate, per serving (based on 8 servings including toffee sauce) and should be treated as a guideline only.
- Any dried dates will do here although Medjool dates are by far the nicest.
- I like using soya milk in vegan baking as it gives the most predictable results due to its high protein content but feel free to use any other plant based milk instead.
- Use neutral tasting oil here (light olive oil or cold pressed rapeseed oil are the best).
- If you don't have any self-raising flour simply use plain (all-purpose) flour with 2.5 teaspoons of baking powder.
- I like adding a bit of mixed spice to my sticky toffee pudding but you can leave it out completely or substitute with ground ginger or cinnamon if you prefer.
- Handful of pecans goes really nicely here but you can leave them out or substitute with other nuts (walnuts would be great).
- Leftovers will keep in the fridge for up to 5 days.
- Freezer friendly for up to 3 months.
- Don't overmix the batter. You don't want to incorporate too much air into the batter as it will cause rapid rise of the pudding in the oven followed by equally rapid fall which you'd like to avoid.
- Don't worry about the lumps in the batter too much. As long as there are no visible signs of flour you're ready to pour your batter into baking tin and bake.
- Once you've mixed your batter and poured it into baking tin get it into preheated oven as soon as possible to ensure nice rise.
- Feel free to pour half of the sauce over the entire cake once out of the oven and has cooled a bit but make sure to keep enough to serve with each individual portion. You can even poke some holes in the cake so that the sauce soaks into it.
- I found the amount of the sauce in this recipe adequate but feel free to double it if you want, you can always freeze the leftovers.
- Vegan sticky toffee pudding is by far best served slightly warm with generous helping of toffee sauce.
Nutrition
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