International Sticky Toffee Pudding Day Date in the current year: January 23, 2024

For most Americans, pudding is a light dessert that resembles custard or mousse. In the United Kingdom and some Commonwealth nations, however, the term “pudding” is very broad and can refer to various sweet and savory dishes, ranging from traditional Christmas pudding to black pudding, which is actually a type of blood sausage. Depending on their type, British puddings can be boiled, steamed, or baked.

Sticky toffee pudding is a type of baked dessert pudding that resembles a cake. It is also known as sticky date pudding in Australia and New Zealand. The dessert consists of a moist sponge cake with finely chopped dates covered in a sticky toffee sauce. Dates, however, are an optional ingredient.

Many culinary experts consider sticky toffee pudding a British classic, but the origins of this dessert are murky. Owners of several pubs claim to have invented it; the earliest claim, made by the owner of the Gait Inn in Millington, dates back to 1907. 

Sticky toffee pudding was popularized in the 1970s in Cumbria, but the foundation for that was laid in the 1940s, when two Royal Canadian Air Force officers lodged at an hotel in Claughton, Lancashire during World War II. They shared the pudding recipe with the hotel’s owner, Patricia Martin, who subsequently gave it to Francis Coulson and Robert Lee. 

Coulson and Lee perfected the recipe and started serving the pudding at the Sharrow Bay Country House Hotel sometime in the 1960s. The dessert was further popularized in Cumbria by Howard and Jean John who developed a takeaway version of the sticky toffee pudding and started selling it at Cartmel Village Shop in 1984. 

As we’ve already mentioned above, the two essential components of the sticky toffee pudding are a moist sponge cake and a toffee sauce. The sponge cake is usually lighter and fluffier than traditional British sponge, which tends to be on the heavier side. It can be lightly flavored with cloves and other spices. The sponge may also contain finely chopped dates and sometimes nuts, but not necessarily.

The toffee sauce is made with double cream and dark sugar. It is poured over the sponge cake before serving. Sticky toffee pudding is often served with vanilla ice cream or custard because their vanilla flavor complements the rich taste of the pudding. The dessert can also be served with light cream.  

The origins of International Sticky Toffee Pudding Day are even less clear thant the origins of the pudding itself, but don’t let it stop you from celebrating this amazing holiday! You can observe it by enjoying sticky toffee pudding; it doesn’t matter whether you buy it or make it yourself. And don’t forget to spread the word about the holiday on social media with the hashtags #InternationalStickyToffeePuddingDay and #StickyToffeePuddingDay so that others can celebrate it too.