To me Sticky Date Pudding is Christmas in a mouthful. My aunty has brought sticky date pudding to every family Christmas for as long as I can remember and it’s everyones number one request. It’s a classic Christmas dessert in Australia. But, it’s been 10 years since I’ve been gluten-free and 10 long years since I’ve enjoyed Sticky Date Pudding on Christmas. So I developed this recipe for a gluten free sticky date pudding and, honestly, it’s better than the original! I’ve used my go-to mix of gluten free flours to keep it gluten-free yet moist, almond flour, buckwheat flour and tapioca flour. These flours create a fluffy yet moist crumb that is just delicious.
Ingredients You’ll Need to Make Sticky Date Pudding
Here is everything you will need to make this Sticky Date Pudding, as well as any possible ingredient swaps and notes. You can find the ingredient quantities in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Dry Ingredients
- dates – this recipe uses dried pitted dates that are roughly chopped up.
- bicarb soda – also known as baking soda, not to be mistaken with baking powder.
- baking powder – if you need this recipe to be gluten-free then make sure your baking powder is also gluten-free.
- almond flour – almond flour is a finely ground blanched almond meal and you can find it in most grocery stores.
- buckwheat flour – my favourite gluten-free flour! Buckwheat flour is pretty easy to find at most grocery stores these days.
- tapioca flour – tapioca flour or tapioca starch lightens up the flour mix, helping to give that fluffy crumb.
- coconut sugar – coconut sugar is so good in this recipe for that toffee flavour and it is slightly lower GI than cane sugar. However you can swap it for brown sugar or rapadura sugar if you can’t find coconut sugar.
Wet Ingredients
- extra virgin olive oil – extra virgin olive oil is my go-to oil for cooking. It’s filled with healthy fats and antioxidants.
- eggs
Butterscotch Sauce
- thickened cream
- salted butter – if you’re wanting to reduce the salt content then you can use unsalted butter.
- coconut sugar – again, this can be swapped for brown sugar if you can’t find coconut sugar.
- sea salt flakes
- vanilla extract
Variations
- gingerbread cake – add one teaspoon of dried ginger to the batter before beating.
How to Make Sticky Date Pudding
This gluten free sticky date pudding is a really simple dessert to make and isn’t overly involved. Here’s how.
Start by preheating the oven to 180°C/356°F (conventional) and lining a square cake tin (20cm x 20cm or 8 inch x 8 inch) with parchment paper and set aside.
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To make the batter, start by adding the chopped dates to a small saucepan and top with 1 cup of water and then the bicarb and baking powder. Turn the pan to a medium heat and stir to combine. Bring the dates and water to a simmer and simmer for around 5 minutes or until the dates are softened. Turn off the heat.
In a large mixing bowl whisk together the eggs, olive oil and coconut sugar. Add the almond flour and then seive in the buckwheat flour and tapioca flour. Add the date mixture and then use an electric mixer to mix until you have a smooth batter.
Pour the batter into the lined cake tin. Pop the cake into the oven and bake for 25 minutes or until cooked through when tested with a skewer.
While the cake cooks, make the butterscotch sauce. Add the coconut sugar, butter, cream, vanilla extract and salt to a pan. Turn the heat to low and stir as the butter melts. Continue stirring throughout to bring all of the ingredients together. Once the sauce begins to thicken enough that it coats the back of a wooden spoon, turn off the heat. Pour the sauce into a jug.
Slice the cake into 9 pieces. Serve each piece of sticky date warm in a dish topped with warm toffee sauce and a scoop of vanilla ice cream (optional).
Storage
Store leftover cake and sauce in seperate airtight containers in the fridge. Warm each serve for around 30 seconds in the microwave before serving or warm the sauce in a saucepan and the cake in a cake tin covered in foil in a low oven until warm.
Gluten Free Sticky Date Pudding
Equipment
- Small saucepan
- Whisk
- Chopping Board
- Sharp knife
- Electric Beaters
- Square cake tin
- Medium saucepan
Ingredients
- 1 cup dates, pitted, roughly chopped
- ½ teaspoon bicarb soda
- 1 cup water
- ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
- ½ cup coconut sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 1 cup almond flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ cup buckwheat flour
- ½ cup tapioca starch
Butterscotch Sauce
- ¾ cup coconut sugar
- 75 grams butter
- 300 grams cream
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt flakes
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/356°F (conventional). Grease a square 20cmx20cm/8inch x 8inch baking tin with olive oil and then line with parchment paper and set aside.
- Add the chopped dates to a saucepan along with bicarb soda and water. Turn onto a medium heat and simmer for 5 minutes, or until the dates are softened.
- To a large mixing bowl add the olive oil, eggs and coconut sugar. Whisk to combine. Add the almond meal and sieve in the baking powder, buckwheat flour, tapioca starch and date mixture. Use electric beaters to beat until smooth.
- Pour the cake mixture into the prepared baking tin and place into the oven to bake for 25 minutes or until cooked through when tested with a skewer. Once baked, remove from the oven and cover with foil to keep warm.
- To make the butterscotch sauce, add the coconut sugar, butter, cream, vanilla extract and salt to a medium saucepan on a medium-low heat. Whisk to combine and simmer. Continue stirring while the sauce simmers. Once the sugar has dissolved and the sauce is smooth and thickened, turn off the heat.
- To serve, cut the date pudding into 9 pieces. Add a piece of pudding to a plate and top with some butterscotch sauce.
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