Vegan Sticky Date Pudding With Caramel Sauce

Sticky date pudding reminds me of when I was a kid. I’m not sure if mum made it often or if I just remember it that way because we would request it for pretty much every special occasion. We were a family that always had dessert, and I loved that. Sticky date pudding is rich, sweet and warming.

It is exactly what a dessert is meant to be. And it is exactly what we have here today.

There are a few foods that I kind of just gave up on when I realised it was dairy that was making me so sick. Caramel was one of those foods. Sweet, creamy, sticky caramel. Recently I have decided that I don’t want to be restricted by what I cannot eat. I really should be looking for creative ways to eat what I want. And I really wanted to eat a sticky date pudding!

I have definitely started to notice more of a trend towards allergy-friendly baking and acknowledgements of people who have different food restrictions, be it by choice or otherwise.  I have started taking notice of food which is labelled as vegan as it means I can be sure it will be dairy-free.  Vegan options are becoming more and more available. This is something I wanted to incorporate into my baking, making it more available for all dietary restrictions.

A little while back I came across a recipe from Contentedness Cooking that used a caramel made from coconut milk, coconut oil, and coconut blossom sugar. I tested it out and it was amazing. Instantly I knew this was going to be my staple caramel and I was excited to begin to try all the different recipes that I had been avoiding that used heavy cream as their caramelly base.

One Saturday I found myself looking in the cupboard thinking of what I would make. I knew I wanted something with caramel, then I noticed the packet of dates I had bought on impulse without any real purpose. It was time to try a sticky date pudding!

Straight away I did a bit of searching around to see what was out there in terms of vegan sticky date pudding recipes. I did find a few, but the winner was this one from Veggieful. I already knew I would be using a different caramel using coconut oil and coconut blossom sugar so I decided to substitute these in rather than the margarine and brown sugar. The flavour of coconut blossom sugar is fantastic. I find it gives such a rich caramel flavour without being too sickly sweet which was just perfect for this occasion!

This vegan sticky date pudding is sweet, soft, and so very rich which is exactly what a sticky date pudding should be right? As an added bonus this recipe is so easy to make, I am sure this dessert will become a regular crowd pleaser at your house. You definitely don’t need to be vegan to appreciate how delicious this pudding actually is, but it’s great to finally have a recipe that allows non-dairy eaters to indulge in a little (ok, a lot) of caramel.

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5 from 7 votes

Vegan Sticky Date Pudding With Caramel Sauce

A rich vegan sticky date pudding using the goodness of coconut blossom sugar and coconut milk to create a smooth and creamy caramel sauce.

Prep Time40 mins

Cook Time40 mins

Total Time1 hr 20 mins

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Australian

Servings: 6 people

Author: Sally

Ingredients

For The Pudding

• 2 cups dates
• 1 cup boiling water
• 1 tsp bicarbonate soda
• 1 cup SR Flour
• 3/4 cup coconut blossom sugar
• 1/2 cup coconut oil ,melted
• 1 tsp vanilla

For The Caramel Sauce

• 3/4 cup coconut blossom sugar
• 1 can coconut milk
• 3 tbsp coconut oil
• 1 tsp vanilla

Instructions

For The Pudding

• Preheat oven to 180C oven and prepare a square baking pan with oil and line with baking paper.
• Add dates, boiling water and bicarb soda in a bowl and set aside for 15 minutes until dates have softened.
• If your coconut is solid, soften it in the microwave for 30 seconds before then adding it to a large bowl. Add in coconut blossom sugar and whisk together.
• Once the dates are soft, strain and save the water. Finely chop up dates using a food processor or bullet blender before adding to mixture.
• To the sugar and coconut oil mixture, add sifted flour and the water from the dates. Using an electric hand held mixer, beat everything together until well combined.
• Add in chopped dates and mix until smooth.
• Pour mixture into a prepared baking tray and place in the preheated oven for 35-40 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.

For The Caramel Sauce

• In a small saucepan on high, add coconut oil, coconut blossom sugar and coconut milk. Using a whisk, slowly stir until mixture comes to the boil.
• Turn down heat and continue to stir for 15 minutes or until mixture begins to thicken and become a darker caramel colour. Mixture will still be runny but will continue to thicken after you take it off the heat.
• Allow to cool for at least 10 minutes before generously drizzling the caramel sauce over the pudding.

Notes

Tip: This sauce can be stored in the fridge, however it will begin to solidify. To serve again simply warm it up in the microwave for 30 seconds.

Want more vegan dessert recipes? Try these:

Vegan Chocolate Rose Cupcakes
Cookies & Cream Cupcakes (Vegan)
Easy No-Bake Lamington Bars
ANZAC Biscuits
Healthy Caramel & Peanut Butter Balls

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