Vegan Sticky Toffee Pudding (Gluten Free)

A dairy free and vegan friendly spin on an English classic dessert called Sticky Toffee Pudding. A super moist eggless soft sponge that is drizzled with toffee rum sauce made from alcohol essence. Perfect for the family, hosting a dinner or even to impress a dinner date.

Holy molly I've done it again!! I have managed to successful revamp a British classic dessert and turn it into a vegan, gluten free delicious after dinner dessert.

This sticky toffee pudding is uber moist and top it off with a generous drizzle of my homemade toffee rum sauce (alcohol free rum essence).

You will probably consume the whole batch before serving it to your guests/family, but hey...no judgement here!!

What is sticky toffee pudding?

In case you aren't familiar with what it is. Sticky toffee pudding is a moist sponge cake made from dates. The sponge is often served with vanilla custard or topped with toffee sauce.

In New Zealand and Australia, this same dessert is eaten however it is referred to by the name sticky date pudding.

You will find ingredients such as dates, boiling water, bicarbonate soda (baking soda), sugar, butter, flour, vanilla and sometimes treacle is featured too.

My version is gluten free and vegan, yet you wouldn't hardly know the difference. I've made this recipe many times and can honestly say that the omission of the eggs and incorporating gluten free flour is no huge deal breaker

. When you think of gluten free flour, you think of the density or dryness. No, not in this recipe which why I'm so excited for you all to make this as well.

The alcohol free rum is such a game changer. I love to use it where possible like when I made these Rum Cupcakes and Gluten Free Coconut Rum Cake.

The ingredients you will need

• Gluten free flour: I used homemade gluten free flour blend to make this recipe.
• Dates: You want dates that are pitted for convenience. Medjool dates are juicy and supersozed but very expensive so just grab a bag of regular pitted dates.
• Almond milk: Almond or any other plant based milk is suitable to use.
• Bicarbonate soda (baking soda): The soda is used as an activator.
• Coconut oil: any other oil works too!!
• Coconut sugar: This is my favourite slow releasing sweetener to use but raw cane sugar works too.
• Spices: Cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and vanilla essence
• Coconut milk: Full fat milk such as this is great for making the sauce with.
• Dairy Free Butter: I like to use Vitalite or Earth balance seems to be a great vegan alternative
• Rum Essence: Completely optional but a splash of this yields an alcohol/booze free grown up touch.

How to make vegan sticky toffee pudding

• Preheat the oven to 180c/356f/gas mark 4
• Grease a non stick square baking tin and set aside (picture 1)
• Add the flour, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger in a bowl and set aside
• Add the 1 cup of almond milk to a medium sized sauce pan with the dates, bring to the boil and simmer for 8-10 minutes stirring all the while. During the given time the dates will have softened with most of the liquid absorbed. (picture 2)
• Remove the saucepan from the stove now add the bicarbonate soda (baking soda). The dates mixture will begin to froth a little. (picture 3)
• Let the dates cool slightly before pouring them with a food processor along with the vanilla, coconut oil and remaining ¼ (60ml) cup of almond milk. (picture 4)
• Puree the dates, coconut oil, vanilla and almond milk into a smooth consistency. (picture 5)
• Add half of the flour mixture and mix using the food processor, scrap down the sides if necessary.
• Then add the remaining bit of flour to the food processor and mix until everything is smooth and evenly combined. (picture 6-7)
• Scrap the batter into the greased baking tin and use a spatula to level the batter so it is even. (picture 8)
• Bake for 30-35 minutes until golden brown, use a tooth pick/skewer to prick the sponge to determine its readiness. If it comes out clean then it is baked, if not, bake for another 5 minutes and repeat this step.
• While the pudding is baking in the oven, prepare the toffee rum sauce. Add the coconut milk, dairy free butter and sugar in a medium sized saucepan and bring to the boil while stirring. (picture 9-10)
• Once boiled, reduce the heat and simmer (while stirring) for 20 minutes until the sauce has darken and thicken.
• Take the sauce off the stove now stir in your rum essence .
• Serve with the date pudding

Serving suggestions

• Ice cream
• Custard
• Whipped coconut cream

Frequently asked questions

Is the toffee sauce child friendly?

Yes. rum essence is simply the flavour of rum where the alchol content has been completely removed. This recipe is suitable for children and will not cause any intoxication.

What do you do with any leftover pudding?

You can either store the vegan sticky toffee pudding at room temperature or freeze it. If you are storing the pudding, leave it to completely cool down before storing in an air tight container or wrap it. Make sure to consume with 3-4 days of baking.

Alternatively, freezing allows the cake to last longer, make sure to wrap or store the pudding in a freezer friendly package to prevent freezer burn.

Freeze for up to 3 months and thaw out completely before re-heating.

Can the pudding be re-heated?

Yes, make sure it's thawed out first of all if heating from frozen. I usually cover the sponge over in foil to retain the moisture.

I'm not gluten free, can I still make the recipe?

Yes, just use regular/other flour if you aren't gluten intolerant or have a wheat allergy.

Is there an alternative to using dates?

Raisins, prunes even apricots would make a great alternative

How many slices does the pudding make?

I sliced it into 6 big slices, but you could easily slice it into 8 pieces.

Do you have to include the sauce?

It's what makes the pudding "sticky" you can omit it but it seems a bit pointless.

Notes and tips

• The additional rum essence is optional. I used essence to make the recipe alcohol free. You can use dark rum, the real deal if you want to.
• I used my homemade gluten free flour blend for best results. However, a mixture of buckwheat/rice flour works just fine
• Once the sponge has baked you can either drizzle the sauce over the entire batch or over individual slices.
• I used a 9x9'' inches baking tin and greased with coconut oil
• You can use coconut oil or an alternative oil such as olive oil or even butter if you wish.
• If you are worried about calories use water instead of almond milk.
• Store any leftovers in an air tight container for 3-4 days away from heat and direct sunlight (DON'T refrigerate) or freeze any leftovers
• Serve hot or cold.

More desserts you may like

• Gluten Free Vegan Avocado Chocolate Crumble
• Vegan Pumpkin Parfait
• Cardamom Black Rice Pudding
• Chocolate Avocado Ice Cream 
• Gluten Free Apple Crisp (Apple Crumble)
• Vegan Pistachio Ice Cream
• Vegan Instant Pot Rice Pudding

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Vegan Sticky Toffee Pudding

A dairy free and vegan friendly spin on an English classic dessert called Sticky Toffee Pudding. A super moist eggless soft sponge that is drizzled with toffee rum sauce made from alcohol essence. Perfect for the family, hosting a dinner or even to impress a dinner date.

5 from 6 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American, British

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 50 minutes

Servings: 4 servings

Calories: 744kcal

Author: Charla

Ingredients

• ▢ 1 ¼ cup of dates pitted (200g)
• ▢ 1 ¾ cup of gluten free flour 250g(bob red mill 1 to 1 flour or buckwheat/rice flour)
• ▢ 1 cup of almond milk 250ml or 8oz
• ▢ ¼ cup of almond milk 60ml
• ▢ ⅓ cup of coconut oil melted (70g)
• ▢ 1 cup of coconut sugar 100g
• ▢ 1 teaspoon of bicarbonate soda baking soda
• ▢ ½ teaspoon of cinnamon
• ▢ ½ teaspoon of ginger
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon of nutmeg
• ▢ 1 teaspoon vanilla essense

For the toffee rum sauce

• ▢ 1 400ml/ can of coconut milk
• ▢ ¼ cup of coconut sugar 75g
• ▢ ¼ cup of dairy free butter 75g
• ▢ 1 tablespoon of rum essence or dark rum

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 180c/356f/gas mark 4
• Grease a non stick square baking tin and set aside
• Add the flour, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger in a bowl and set aside
• Add the 1 cup of almond milk to a medium sized sauce pan with the dates, bring to the boil and simmer for 8-10 minutes stirring all the while. During the given time the dates will have softened with most of the liquid absorbed.
• Remove the saucepan from the stove now add the bicarbonate soda (baking soda). The dates mixture will begin to froth a little.
• Let the dates cool slightly before pouring them with a food processor along with the vanilla essence, coconut oil and remaining ¼ (60ml) cup of almond milk.
• Puree the dates, coconut oil, vanilla and almond milk into a smooth consistency.
• Add half of the flour mixture and mix using the food processor, scrap down the sides if necessary.
• Then add the remaining bit of flour to the food processor and mix until everything is smooth and evenly combined.
• Scrap the batter into the greased baking tin and use a spatula to level the batter so it is even.
• Bake for 30-35 minutes until golden brown, use a tooth pick/skewer to prick the sponge to determine its readiness. If it comes out clean then it is baked, if not, bake for another 5 minutes and repeat this step.
• While the pudding is baking in the oven, prepare the toffee rum sauce. Add the coconut milk, dairy free butter and sugar in a medium sized saucepan and bring to the boil while stirring.
• Once boiled, reduce the heat and simmer (while stirring) for 20 minutes until the sauce has darken and thicken.
• Take the sauce off the stove now stir in your rum essence
• Serve with date pudding

Notes

• The additional rum essence is optional. I used essence to make the recipe alcohol free. You can use dark rum, the real deal if you want to.
• I use Bob red's mill one to one baking flour for best results. However, a mixture of buckwheat/rice flour works just fine
• Once the sponge has baked you can either drizzle the sauce over the entire batch or over individual slices.
• I used a 9x9'' inches baking tin and greased with coconut oil
• You can use coconut oil or alternative oil such as olive oil or even butter if you wish
• If you are worried about calories use water instead of almond milk.
• Store any leftovers in an air tight container for 3-4 days away from heat and direct sunlight (DON'T refrigerate) or freeze any leftovers
• Serve hot or cold

Nutrition

Calories: 744kcal | Carbohydrates: 117g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 32g | Saturated Fat: 18g | Sodium: 561mg | Potassium: 301mg | Fiber: 9g | Sugar: 64g | Calcium: 147mg | Iron: 2mg

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