If you love the sound of a soft date cake topped with a sweet and sticky caramel sauce, you're going to adore this sticky date pudding cake which is one of the most moreish desserts that I've ever made.
This easy recipe takes less than 30 minutes to bake inside the oven and it is like a hug in a bowl. I used to eat cakes like this all the time growing up and it's great to be reviving many of my old favorites.

I also like to serve this treat with homemade custard or dairy-free single cream alongside the caramel. No matter how you decide to plate it up, I know you're going to love it!
Some other pudding recipes that you'll enjoy include my vegan sticky toffee pudding, vegan pudding cake and vegan banana pudding poke cake. Give them all a try!
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Why You Will Love This Cake
- The Caramel - When making this recipe, people are normally split into two groups. Some people prefer the cake and some people prefer the homemade caramel sauce. The caramel is thick, gooey and has a nice amount of sweetness. I also used dark brown sugar for it which deepened the flavors massively, as opposed to the light brown sugar that I often use in my vegan pecan coconut cake and vegan gingerbread coffee cake recipes.
- So Wholesome - A warm bowl of sticky date pudding can automatically make your day better. It's so homely and soul-warming. I could honestly eat it every single day.
- Made From Dates - The most amazing thing about this recipe is that the texture owes most of it's tastiness to medjool dates which are a caramel-like, meaty and soft kind of date which works really well for pudding cakes like this.
- Allergy Friendly & Plant Based - This sticky date pudding recipe is entirely vegan and dairy free.
Ingredient Notes
- Self-Rising Flour - This allows the cake to rise to a nice height. The cake will also be nice and airy when the ratios of the other ingredients are well balanced with the self-rising flour.
- Dark Brown Sugar - The dark brown sugar will be used for both the cake batter and the caramel sauce topping. It naturally contains much more molasses than many other kinds of sugars. It deepens the flavors of the cake significantly.
- Medjool Dates - These soft dates need to be boiled inside a pot for a short while with the plant milk. The mixture will then be blended and poured into the cake mixture.
- Coconut Cream - This will be added to the caramel sauce to make it creamier.
- Instant Coffee Granules - Strengthens the caramel flavors without being too overwhelming. I also added this ingredient to my vegan chocolate mousse cake and my vegan chocolate ganache cupcakes for the exact same reason.
See recipe card for full information on individual ingredients and quantities.
Substitutions & Variations
- If you'd like to lower the sugar content in this recipe, you can by leaving the caramel sauce out altogether. Alternatively, you can serve the cake with cream or custard like I recommend for my vegan blueberry almond cake. This will make it much less sweet but the dessert will still remain equally as delicious.
- You can make this date cake completely nut-free by making one easy alteration to the ingredient list. Although the chopped pecans are really tasty and give the treat a unique feel, they can be left out.
How To Make Sticky Date Pudding Cake
For the full method, please refer to the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
1: Line and grease a square baking pan with parchment paper and dairy-free butter. Set aside.
2: Add the dates and the milk to a pot.
3: Cook the mixture until a thickened dater paste forms.
4: Blend the date mixture until it is smooth.
5: Pour the date mixture into a large mixing bowl.
6: Add the dry cake ingredients to the bowl, then fold them in well.
7: Finally, fold in the chopped pecans.
8: Pour the date cake batter into the prepared cake pan. Bake inside the oven.
9: Let the cake cool fully.
10: Make the caramel while the cake cools.
11: Poke holes into the cake then pour the caramel over the cake so that the holes are filled.
12: Slice the sticky date pudding and pour over extra caramel if you wish.
13: Place a scoop of dairy-free ice cream over the pudding and serve.
Expert Tips
Don't over mix the batter - By over mixing the batter, you can negatively affect the outcome of the pudding. If the gluten is over worked, it will come out from the oven which a consistency which is dense and unpleasant.
Keep an eye on the caramel - Make sure that you don't burn caramel sauce topping or else it will ruin the whole dessert. Stir inside the sauce pan regularly whilst it cooks.
Recipe FAQs
Sticky date pudding tastes very similar to the classic recipe that is sticky toffee pudding. If anything, the dates make the treat even stickier, along with the chewy textures and the strong flavors of molasses.
Yes there is! If you aren't a fan of dates, you can use other dried fruits such as, figs and prunes which make excellent alternatives.
Place it into an airtight container and place it into the fridge for up to 4 days. You can also store the caramel sauce topping separately inside the fridge for the same amount of time.
More Vegan Caramel Recipes
If you tried this Sticky Date Pudding Cake Recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how you go in the 📝 comments below. I love hearing from you!
Best Sticky Date Pudding Cake
Ingredients
Sponge Cake:
- 200 g medjool dates pitted and chopped
- 475 ml soy milk
- 120 g plain dairy-free yogurt room temperature
- 120 ml vegetable oil
- 275 g self-rising flour sifted
- 0.5 teaspoon baking powder
- 0.5 teaspoon baking soda
- Pinch of salt
- 125 g light brown soft sugar
- 125 g dark brown soft sugar
- 70 g pecans chopped
Caramel Sauce:
- 175 g dark brown soft sugar
- 175 g dairy-free butter
- 100 g canned coconut cream thick part at top of can
- 0.5 teaspoon instant coffee granules
Garnish:
- Dairy-free ice cream to taste
Instructions
Preparation:
- Preheat the oven to 170 Celsius (338F).
- Line a 9-inch, square baking tin with parchment paper and grease with a little dairy-free butter. Set aside.
Making the date mixture:
- Add the dates to a medium saucepan, along with the soy milk. Place the saucepan over a medium heat and cook for 10-12 minutes stirring constantly. This allows the dates to soften.
- Remove the saucepan from the heat. Pour the mixture into a high-speed blender and blend until it is completely smooth. There will be no large pieces of the medjool dates remaining.
- Pour the date mixture into a large mixing bowl and stir in the dairy-free yogurt and vegetable oil.
- Next, sift in the flour and fold in the baking powder, baking soda, salt, light brown sugar, dark brown sugar and pecans until just combined. Don't over-mix the cake batter.
Baking the cake:
- Pour your sticky date cake batter into the prepared tin. Bake in the center of the oven for 25-30 minutes. A skewer will come out clean when it's ready.
- While your cake is inside the oven make the caramel toffee sauce. To a small saucepan add the dark brown sugar and dairy-free butter. Place the pan over a medium-high heat a mix to combine with a wooden spoon so that the sugar can dissolve into the butter.
- Once the sugar has fully dissolved, reduce to a medium-low heat and add the coconut cream and instant coffee powder. Stir to combine and cook for a further 1-2 minutes.
- Remove the caramel from the heat and let it cool at room temperature until it thickens.
- Remove the date cake from the oven and let it cool for 10-15 minutes. Poke holes into the cake and pour the caramel toffee sauce over the top of the cake. Let it soak into the cake for 10 minutes then serve.
Video
Notes
- By over mixing the batter, you can negatively affect the outcome of the pudding. If the gluten is over worked, it will come out from the oven which a consistency which is dense and unpleasant.
- Make sure that you don't burn caramel sauce topping or else it will ruin the whole dessert. Stir inside the sauce pan regularly whilst it cooks.
Elsie says
Everything about this sticky date pudding was perfect!
DJ says
Thank you, Elsie!