At its heart, this recipe started with one of our favourite creations: our single serve sticky toffee pudding.
We love a good classic; there’s something so comforting about a warm sticky toffee pudding. The soft date sponge, the rich caramel flavours, the buttery sauce… it’s a dessert that feels nostalgic and indulgent all at once.
But one of the things we love most about food is exploring what happens when you take something familiar and let your imagination run with it.
We’ve always loved fusion food, not just combining flavours for the sake of it, but taking inspiration from different desserts, techniques, and ingredients to create something new. For us, cooking is about curiosity, experimenting, and having fun.
So we asked ourselves: what if our sticky toffee pudding met an almond croissant?
And that’s how this Almond Croissant Sticky Toffee Pudding came to life.
Instead of putting croissant pieces inside the pudding (which would completely change the texture we loved about our original recipe), we decided to keep every element doing its own job.
We kept our original sticky toffee pudding base almost exactly the same, making just one small adjustment by reducing the sugar slightly. The dates still bring that deep caramel sweetness, while the soft sponge remains the perfect foundation.
Then we added a thin layer of almond frangipane on top, inspired by the buttery almond filling you find in a classic almond croissant. Made with ground almonds, almond extract, butter, and flaked almonds, this layer bakes into a delicate almond topping that pairs beautifully with the sticky pudding underneath.
To bring in the croissant element, we created crispy croissant chips on the side. Thin slices of croissant are toasted with butter and sugar until golden and crunchy, adding that flaky, buttery contrast to the soft pudding.
And of course, no sticky toffee pudding would be complete without sauce. We kept things simple with a homemade salted butterscotch sauce, buttery, rich, and the perfect finishing touch.
Served warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, this dessert brings together everything we love: soft and crunchy, warm and cold, classic and creative.
This recipe is a reminder that food doesn’t always have to follow strict rules. Sometimes the best ideas come from asking “what if?” and having fun in the kitchen.
We hope this inspires you to experiment too, to take a recipe you love, add a little imagination, and create something completely your own.
Happy exploring!
Single Serve Almond Croissant Sticky Toffee Pudding
Ingredients
Sticky Toffee Pudding Base
- 40-50 g Medjool dates (3-4) dates, pitted and chopped
- 1/4 cup boiling water (60ml) (60ml)
- 1/4 tbsp baking soda
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter, softened (28g)
- 1 tbsp brown sugar (14g)
- 1/2 tsp vanilla essence
- 1/2 egg (about 25g beaten egg)
- 1/3 cup plain flour (40g)
- 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/8 tsp salt
Thin Almond Frangipane Layer (Almond Croissant Topping)
- 1 tbsp unsalted butter softened (15g)
- 1 tbsp caster sugar 15g
- 1½ tbsp ground almonds 15g
- 1 tsp beaten egg 5g
- ½ tbsp flaked almonds lightly crushed (4–5g)
- ⅛ tsp almond extract
- Pinch of salt
Salted Butterscotch Caramel Sauce
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter 28g
- 3 tbsp dark brown sugar 40g
- ½ cup cream 120ml
- ⅛ tsp vanilla bourbon
- Pinch of salt
Crispy Croissant Chips
- 1 small croissant
- 1 tbsp melted butter 15g
- 1 tbsp sugar
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
Sticky Toffee Pudding
- Preheat oven to 180°C.
- Add chopped dates and boiling water to a bowl. Stir in baking soda and leave for 10 minutes to soften.
- Mash the dates slightly, keeping some texture.
- Cream together butter and brown sugar until combined.
- Mix in vanilla and beaten egg.
- Add the date mixture and stir.
- Fold in flour, baking powder, and salt until just combined.
- Spoon into a greased single-serve ramekin.
- Bake for 18–22 minutes until risen and set but still soft and sticky.
Thin Almond Frangipane Layer (Almond Croissant Topping)
- Mix softened butter and sugar until smooth.
- Add egg and almond extract, mixing until combined.
- Fold in ground almonds, crushed flaked almonds, and salt.
- Spread a thin 3–5mm layer over the baked sticky toffee pudding.
- Return to the oven at 180°C for 8–12 minutes until lightly golden and set.
Salted Butterscotch Caramel Sauce
- Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat.
- Add brown sugar and stir until dissolved.
- Slowly add cream while whisking.
- Simmer for 3–5 minutes until glossy and slightly thickened.
- Stir in vanilla bourbon and salt.
Crispy Croissant Chips
- Slice croissant thinly into chips.
- Brush lightly with melted butter.
- Sprinkle with sugar and salt.
- Bake at 160–170°C for 8–12 minutes, turning halfway, until crisp and golden.
Assembly
- Serve the warm sticky toffee pudding with the almond frangipane layer baked on top.
- Drizzle generously with warm salted butterscotch sauce.
- Place crispy croissant chips alongside for dipping.
- Serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
