If you're looking for a sweet holiday dessert, this Gluten Free Vegan Sticky Toffee Pudding, dripping with rich maple caramel sauce, may be just what you're looking for! It's a delicious twist on a sweet, classic festive dessert.
Years ago, I tried sticky toffee pudding at a restaurant, for the first time. It was amazing, so of course, I decided that I wanted to try making it at home. But then I forgot about it, until recently, when I went to a demonstration put on by Canadian Chef extraordinaire, Lynn Crawford.
As part of her demonstration, she made a maple sticky toffee pudding, which reminded me, and lead me to come up with this vegan sticky toffee pudding recipe (that also happens to be gluten free!).
If you're looking for traditional sticky toffee pudding, let me say right now:
This is NOT it.
This vegan sticky date pudding recipe is far from the traditional British sticky toffee pudding, it's more of an adaptation of the North American'ized version. An adaptation of an adaptation!
Chef Lynn handed out her recipes at the end of her demonstration, and I used her recipe as a guide. Her recipe is not vegan, not gluten free, it contained butter, eggs, maple syrup, no spices, and it was made as one big cake.
So this is a heavily adapted version of hers.
My version of sticky toffee pudding contains most of the usual sticky toffee pudding elements, like dates, a sauce, and lots of sweetness, but this recipe is different because it's eggless, it's vegan, it's gluten-free, and it contains a couple spices.
This recipe also uses a maple caramel sauce, instead of a regular caramel sauce, and the cakes are made individual sized, thanks to being baked in a muffin pan.
Vegan sticky toffee pudding is a dessert to serve on special occasions because it's rich, decadent, and it's also super sweet, so if you love very sweet desserts, then this gluten free sticky toffee pudding is for you!
Most of the sweetness comes from the dates in the cakes, and the rest of it comes from the sticky maple caramel sauce that's drizzled over the tops...twice!
After the puddings come out of the oven, you let them cool for a few minutes, in the muffin pan, and then you poke holes into the cakes with a wood skewer and drizzle the sauce over each one so the caramel soaks in and starts to earn the "sticky" part of its name.
You need to use something that will make holes larger than what a fork or toothpick would give you or the caramel sauce will not soak in well.
Once you drizzle the sauce on top, you leave it to soak in for a little while (all of it won't soak in, there will be some that remains on top). After letting it sit, you leave your gluten free sticky toffee puddings until you're ready to serve and when you serve (ideally, you want to serve them warm), they get another drizzle of the warm maple caramel sauce.
See? I told you it was a special occasion treat! It's perfect for the holidays and special occasions.
The cake part, before it gets soaked in caramel, is cakey, but at the same time, dense. If that makes sense. The denseness comes from the dates, which are heavy, so the cakes don't rise and become very big and fluffy, which is perfectly fine.
The cake is also sweet, and again, that's courtesy of the dates.
Is a Topping Necessary?
Because of the richness of this vegan sticky date pudding recipe, it's perfectly fine to serve without any topping at all, they can stand on their own, just the cakes and the maple caramel sauce, but to make it a little prettier, toppings are nice!
If you do go the topping route, you can serve them with a small scoop of vegan vanilla ice cream, or like I've done here, with a little drop of coconut whipped cream.
How to Store Leftovers
If you're going to have leftovers, set the extras aside and don't poke holes into them or add any maple caramel sauce.
Let them cool and then store them in an airtight container (they will keep for about 2 days) and when you're ready to serve them, wrap them, and place them in a warm oven for a few minutes until they have heated through.
Once they have been reheated, go through the poking, caramel drizzle x 2, and serve!
Can I Make This Recipe with a Different Flour?
I've only tested this recipe with this gluten-free blend. I use Bob's Red Mill All Purpose Gluten-Free Flour Blend (with the red label, not the blue!) (Amazon Link). All blends are different, so your results may not be the same as mine if you choose to use a different gf blend.
If you are not gluten-free and would like to use all-purpose flour, I think it would work fine (I have not personally tested it, yet), BUT, you may have to add a little splash of water or non-dairy milk since the batter may be a little on the thicker side.
Please share a picture on Instagram with me if you make this recipe! I'm @delighfuladventures.
And don't forget to pin this recipe for later.
If you like this vegan sticky toffee pudding recipe, you may also like these:
- Maple Caramel Sauce
- Gingerbread Chocolate Chip Muffins (Vegan + GF)
- Vegan Gluten Free Chocolate Mint Doughnuts
- Chewy Vegan Gluten Free Gingerbread Cookies
- 25 Vegan Food Gifts to Make and Give This Holiday
And be sure to click this link for more vegan, gluten free holiday recipes!
Vegan Sticky Toffee Pudding (Gluten Free)
Ingredients:
- 2 tablespoons ground flax seeds
- 6 tablespoons water
- 1 cup Medjool dates chopped and pitted (about 12 dates)
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ cup hot water
- 1 cup gluten-free flour blend **see important note about flour below**
- 3 tablespoons coconut sugar (or brown sugar)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ¼ cup melted coconut oil
For the Maple Caramel Sauce
- 1 recipe Maple Caramel Sauce (be sure that your maple caramel sauce is warm!)
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Grease 8 of the cups in your muffin pan. If using a good, reliable non-stick pan, skip this step.
- Place chopped, pitted Medjool dates and baking soda into a small bowl. Cover with hot water and stir to dissolve the baking soda. Let sit for 10-15 minutes to soften.
- Prepare your flax eggs by whisking together ground flax seeds and water. Set aside to thicken.
- After the 10-15 minutes have passed, transfer the dates and the liquid to a food processor or blender and puree until a paste has been formed. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk flour, coconut sugar, baking powder, salt, ground cinnamon, and ground nutmeg until combined.
- In a large bowl, add date paste, flax eggs, vanilla extract, and melted coconut oil and mix together.
- Add dry ingredient mixture to wet mixture and stir until combined.
- Divide batter into the 8 muffin cups.
- Bake for 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the middle of the largest cake comes out clean.
- Remove from oven and let sit for 10 minutes.
- If you are not serving all 8 cakes at the same time, remove the cakes you will not be using and set them aside. See note below for further instructions.
- Using a wooden skewer or something similar, poke several holes through each cake. (see note below about this step)
- Spoon about a 1 ½ tablespoons of the warm maple caramel sauce over the top of each cake. Let sit for another 10 minutes.
- Remove each cake and place on its serving plate. Spoon another ½ tablespoon of maple caramel sauce over each cake. Add toppings, if using.
Recipe Notes:
- It's important to know that all gluten-free flour blends use different ingredients and ratios, so results will always vary when you use different blends. I have never used any other brand of flour to make these muffins (other than Bob's Red Mill), so please know that your results may not be the same as mine if you substitute with a different gluten-free flour.
- Coconut flour will NOT work with this recipe.
- You need to use something that will make holes larger than what a fork or toothpick would give you or the caramel sauce will not soak in well. Use a wooden skewer or a butter knife
- If you will not be serving all 8 cakes at once, stop at step 10. Set the extras aside and don't poke holes into them or add any maple caramel sauce. Let them cool and then store them in an airtight container (they will keep for about 2 days). When you're ready to serve them, wrap them in foil, and place them in a warm oven for a few minutes until they have heated through. Once they have been reheated, go through the poking, caramel drizzle x 2, and serve!
- Nutrition info is based on 1 cake with maple caramel sauce and without any other garnishes. Nutrition info is only to be used as a rough guide. Click to learn how nutrition info is calculated on this website.
Marta says
Thank you Gwen for this lovely recipe. I had some fresh Medjool dates that fermented:( Didn’t want to loose them so my pastry chef husband proposes sticky toffee pudding. But he has just traditional recipes so very happy to find your vegan & gluten free cake. I used half buckwheat and half sorghum flour. Came out delicious. Baked it in a long tart form. We ate it without the sauce. Just few mandarins... Kids loved it. I’ll make it again!
Ps. Can be used as travel treat.
Gwen Leron says
Hi Marta! I'm so glad you found the recipe and decided to give it a try! I'm happy to know that you liked it and that it worked well with your substitutions. Thank you so much for your note 🙂
Sara says
Would these freeze well?
Gwen Leron says
Hi Sara, I haven't tried freezing them but I think cooling them off right after baking and before adding any sauce would be fine. Just thaw, warm up and then add the sauce when ready. If you end up making them, let me know how things go! 🙂
Catherine Laurence says
Thanks for the lovely recipe. I adapted it slightly (no added sugar; not gluten free) and we had them hot with nice-cream. Will definitely make again and again. <3
Gwen Leron says
I'm so happy to hear you enjoyed the recipe, Catherine 🙂 Serving with nice cream sounds lovely, I will have to try that next time I make it! Thanks for taking the time to leave your note, very much appreciated.
Rosemary Mansfield says
We don't have Bobs Red Mill in the UK - would a plain gluten free four do the job?
Gwen Leron says
Hi Rosemary, I haven't tried with any others, other than Bob's Red Mill. All gluten-free flour blends works slightly differently, so it's hard to say. The Bob's Red Mill that I use I use has no xanthan gum so if you want to try substituting with another brand, keep that in mind. Also be sure that you use a blend rather than a single flour, like oat flour on its own, or rice flour on its own. It must be a blend. If you do try the recipe out with a different gf flour blend, please stop back and let me know how things went!
reb says
what to use instead of flaxseed ground - is almond meal an option?
Gwen Leron says
Hi Reb, the ground flaxseeds are being used as an egg replacement (more info here), so no, almond meal will not work. If you can't have flax, I would suggest using chia seeds to make the flax egg. I hope this helps! 🙂
Lisa says
We really enjoyed them ! I did leave out the coconut sugar as it didn’t seem necessary. I took pictures to send you but don’t see how. Very simple and impressive recipe and I’m so glad I found it! This is something I will likely make every Christmas!
Lisa in Manitoba
Gwen says
I'm so glad you enjoyed them, Lisa! And very happy you found the recipe. I would love to see your pictures! You can share them with me on Instagram if you are on there. Just be sure to tag me so I get a notification (I'm @delightfuladventures) Thanks so much for your very kind note, I hope Manitoba is a little warmer than it is here in Ottawa 🙂
Lisa says
It’s a year later and I just sent you last years pictures as I prepare to make them again. Says a lot I don’t usually make the same thing twice! Thank you and I hope they’re as good this year as last. Merry Christmas!
Gwen Leron says
Thank you so much for sending the pictures, Lisa! I'm so, so happy to hear you like the recipe and that you came back to make it again this year. I hope you have a Merry Christmas! 🙂
Monica says
I made these yesterday, for Christmas. They were amazing, apart from me and my husband the rest of my family is not vegan but they all loved it! I’m Italian and here in Italy the Christmas dessert is either panettone or pandoro but nobody even touched the panettone, they asked for more of these 😊. The only variation to the recipe I made was adding a bit of Irish whiskey to the maple caramel sauce in honour of my Irish husband and it turned out perfect. Thanx for this amazing recipe. Buone feste from Italy.
Monica
Gwen @ Delightful Adventures says
Monica, your note made my day! Thank you so much. I am SO happy to hear that you made these for your Christmas dessert and that everyone liked them! And great idea adding whiskey to the maple caramel sauce 🙂 Yum! Enjoy the rest of your holidays, all the way from Canada 🙂
LouAnn says
I can’t use coconut oil.
Help!!
What can I use in its place?!
Gwen @ Delightful Adventures says
Hi LouAnn! When I was testing this recipe, I tried it with vegan butter and it turned out fine but I don't like the taste of the vegan butter I have access too, so I went with something more neutral, the coconut oil. If you can use a nice tasting neutral flavoured vegan butter, I would use that. If that is not an option, plain vegetable oil would also work fine. I have not tested an oil-free version, but there is a chance applesauce may work in place of the coconut oil, but I can't guarantee that one will work. As for the caramel sauce, the coconut oil can be omitted. I hope this helps! Let me know how things go 🙂