Sticky Toffee Puddings with Salted Toffee Sauce & Pouring Custard

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

The British spoon dessert done properly: dark, almost jammy date sponges baked in ramekins, soaked twice with a salted brown-sugar toffee sauce, then flooded at the table with warm vanilla pouring custard. The dates are simmered and blitzed so the crumb stays wet and pudding-soft rather than cakey, and the crème anglaise is cooked to 180°F for a custard that coats a spoon without a hint of scramble.

Ingredients

• 8 oz Medjool dates, pitted (about 1 1/3 cups packed)
• 1 cup boiling water
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 6 tbsp unsalted butter, softened, plus more for the ramekins
• 3/4 cup dark brown sugar, packed
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (180 g)
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

• 1 cup dark brown sugar, packed
• 8 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 2 tbsp golden syrup or light corn syrup
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 3/4 tsp flaky sea salt

• 1 1/2 cups whole milk
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1 vanilla bean, split (or 2 tsp vanilla bean paste)
• 4 large egg yolks
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1 pinch fine sea salt

Instructions

1. Put the pitted dates in a small saucepan with the 1 cup boiling water and simmer over medium-low heat for 5 minutes, until very soft and slumping. Off the heat, stir in the baking soda — it will foam. Let stand 10 minutes, then blend or mash to a coarse, slightly chunky purée (a stick blender in the pan is easiest). Cool to just warm, about 15 minutes.
2. Heat the oven to 350°F. Generously butter eight 6-oz ramekins and set them on a rimmed baking sheet. (A buttered 8x8-inch baking dish also works; see tips.)
3. Beat the 6 tbsp softened butter with the 3/4 cup dark brown sugar on medium-high speed for 3 minutes, until light and sandy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating 30 seconds after each, then the vanilla. The mixture may look split — that's fine.
4. Whisk the flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon together in a bowl. Add half the dry ingredients to the batter on low speed, then half the warm date purée; repeat with the rest. Mix just until no streaks of flour remain. The batter will be loose, like thick pancake batter.
5. Divide the batter among the ramekins, filling each about two-thirds full (a scant 1/2 cup each). Bake 22–26 minutes, until the tops are domed and springy and a toothpick comes out with a few moist crumbs. Do not overbake — dryness is the only way this dessert fails.
6. While they bake, make the toffee sauce: combine the 1 cup dark brown sugar, 8 tbsp butter, 1 cup heavy cream, and golden syrup in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir until the butter melts, then bring to a simmer and cook 5–6 minutes, stirring often, until glossy and slightly thickened — it should coat the back of a spoon and read about 220°F. Off the heat, stir in the vanilla and flaky salt.
7. Pierce the hot puddings all over with a skewer, about 10 pokes each, and spoon 1 tablespoon of hot toffee sauce over each. Let them drink it in for 10 minutes. Reserve the remaining sauce, warm.
8. For the custard, combine the milk and 1/2 cup cream in a saucepan. Scrape in the vanilla bean seeds and add the pod. Heat over medium until steaming and bubbles ring the edge, about 4 minutes, then turn off the heat and steep 10 minutes.
9. Whisk the egg yolks, granulated sugar, and pinch of salt in a bowl until pale, about 1 minute. Whisking constantly, pour in about 1/2 cup of the hot milk to temper, then whisk in the rest in a steady stream.
10. Return everything to the saucepan over medium-low heat. Stir constantly with a silicone spatula, scraping the bottom and corners, for 5–8 minutes until the custard thickens and reaches 178–180°F on an instant-read thermometer; it should coat the spatula so a finger leaves a clean track. Do not let it boil.
11. Immediately strain the custard through a fine-mesh sieve into a pitcher (discard the pod). Serve warm, or press plastic wrap onto the surface and chill up to 3 days.
12. To serve, run a knife around each pudding and invert onto a warm shallow bowl. Spoon over more warm toffee sauce until it pools, then pour the custard around the base at the table. Finish with a few flakes of salt.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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