The Best 10-Minute Microwave Sticky Toffee Pudding Recipe

Let’s get this out of the way: no, I am not as good at reviewing sticky toffee puddings as STP Reviews. I have neither the expertise nor the drive to assess 60+ of the cakes, and certainly have not refined a marking system so good it’s earned me tens of thousands of fans.

But I do like the dessert, and I’m generally strict about baked goods (woe betide anyone who gets me started on fudgy vs cakey “brownies”). I demand plenty of glossy, rich, buttery sauce, a moist sponge, and a molasses-y mass of dates.

Which might lead some to wonder why I tried a microwave STP recipe last week. All I can say is that it was late, the recipe had hundreds of five-star reviews, and I craved it. Even Nigella has “emergency” baked goods for such urgent cases.

I followed the New York Times’ recipe. It starts with a mug of melted butter, to which you add brown sugar, salt, and cream before zapping for 30-second increments: that’s your caramel sauce.

Mine took me about a minute. It’s important to really thoroughly stir the sauce between microwave sessions, or else it could become gritty and split.

The recipe asked for dates, butter, cream, and baking soda to be mixed in a bowl next. I microwaved these before mashing them; the dates turn into an earthy-smelling puree remarkably quickly.

(Side note: they make a great caramel if you’re ever in a bind or can’t have dairy).

Then, add flour, cinnamon, sugar, and salt, and microwave the lot for about 45 seconds.

Pour the thickened sauce over the cake, add cream if you like (I do), and you’re done!

I was impressed by how quickly the whole job was done. It took me 10 minutes, as promised. The process is both easy and gloopily satisfying (the dates in particular were fun to make).

It’s not gorgeous to look at, but come on: who cares? This is a 10 pm, over-the-kitchen-sink eat if ever I saw one.

The standout is the caramel sauce. The recipe authors said it’d thicken as the cake cooked, which it did; by the end, it was velvety, thick and smooth. If you’re ever in a dessert-mergency, I do recommend making that sauce and smothering anything vaguely cake-y in it.

That said, I don’t believe the sponge in an STP should be relegated to the role of sauce carrier, and this one felt that way. The cake was a little rubbery and dry; its crumb was indistinct and far from tender. Still, nobody else said that in the comments, so maybe I left mine in too long.

Regardless, for ten minutes and a microwave, I was pretty wowed. It hit a lot of the marks of a great sticky toffee pudding (luxurious sauce, date-y stickiness, and rich butter flavour), and it more than exceeded my expectations.

It’s not going to score highly on a pro’s account, I reckon. But when you’re in a rush and/or have a craving, its value rockets to at least an 8/10. Reviewers have given it five stars for good reason.