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Wow, this Sticky Toffee Cake sandwiched with a smooth caramel icing and filled with pecan praline must be one of my favourite cakes I have ever made. It tastes SOOO good! The sponge is fluffy and full of spice, the icing is super smooth, and the crunchy pecan praline gives the cake an amazing texture! This is the perfect cake for a Bonfire Night celebration – or any other occasion really!
The toffee buttercream icing is spread in a thin layer around the sides of the cake, so that some of the sponge remains visible, creating a “naked cake” effect. The cake is then decorated with some of the pecan praline and some little toffee apples!
The Sticky Toffee Cake
Right… Let´s talk cake elements. First of all – the cake! This cake tastes amazing – full of spices and with a similar taste you would expect from a sticky toffee pudding (probably my favourite dessert of all times!). This recipe is inspired by a cake someone made on the Bake Off which I found in this recipe book here (also available on the GBBO website). I have, of course, stayed true to myself and played around with the recipe a bit, haha!
First of all, the cake batter contains dates – just like a real sticky toffee pudding! Soft pitted dates are cooked in some apple juice to soften and then pureed before adding to the cake batter. The batter itself is flavoured with loads of cinnamon and mixed spice and made with brown sugar, giving it a lovely dark colour! The cake is made using the creaming method, so you need to make sure all your ingredients are at room temperature and be quite careful that your mixture doesn´t curdle when adding the eggs (tips in the recipe below). If I´m being honest, I really hate the creaming method. I used it this time as that was what the original recipe recommended, however, next time I make this I will use the all-in-one method and see how that turns out! If it works equally as well I´ll let you know!
Caramel-Butter-Cream-Cheese Frosting
As you can maybe tell from the heading, I´m not quite sure what to call this icing or “frosting”. But caramel-butter-cream-cheese frosting will pretty much tell you all there is to know!
The make the frosting you first make a delicious caramel/toffee cream concoction. Whilst making the caramel (see below) you will need to heat up some cream so that it has a similar temperature to the caramel. If you don´t heat it before adding it, the caramel may crystallise – and we wouldn´t want that, eh? The toffee is then quickly brought to the boil again, then transferred to a bowl and left to chill until cool.
The base of the frosting is the same as that of a buttercream. It´s important to beat the butter for about 5 minutes until very pale and fluffy, before adding the icing sugar in two portions (check out my baking basics post on How To Make Buttercream for more information). Then, some full-fat cream cheese is added (makes the icing super creamy!), before whisking in the cooled toffee. Trust me, this icing is absolutely delicious and you´ll have to try your best to not just eat it all from the bowl! Remember – it´s for on the cake! 😉
Pecan Praline and Toffee Apples
For a little crunch and to give the cake some texture, I made a pecan praline that I scattered in between the layers of cake, using the rest to decorate the top. A praline is basically just a caramel with nuts in it, that you leave to harden and then crush into smaller pieces. I used pecan nuts in my recipe, but you could also use walnuts or hazelnuts! The choice is yours!
Once you have made the caramel (see below), quickly tip in the nuts, give them a swirl in the caramel, then pour the mix onto a baking tray lined with greaseproof paper. Leave until the caramel has hardened before chopping the praline into small chunks using a sharp knife!
To decorate, I made some more caramel and dipped some apple balls I cut out of some Golden Delicious Apples using a melon baller! I put them onto the ends of cocktail sticks, dipped them in caramel and then left them to drip-dry hanging over the countertop to create a “peak”. Let´s just say it wasn´t my finest work – my caramel decorating skills definitely need improving! And the kitchen was a sticky caramel MESS! 😊
How To Make Caramel
Making caramel can be really tricky! Trust me, I have burned a lot of caramel in the past trying to learn how to do it properly! However, if you follow the “rules”, everything should be alright. You´ll be making about three batches of caramel in this recipe so you´ll be a pro by the end of it!
To start with, you want to heat the sugar and water over a low heat until the sugar has dissolved. Then turn up the heat a bit and bring the sugar syrup to a rapid boil. Then come the most important things: DO NOT STIR the caramel and BE PATIENT. It is absolutely vital not to stir the caramel as that might cause it to crystallise. What you can do, is lift the pot and give the caramel a bit of a swirl if you are scared of burning it. But DO NOT be tempted to stick a spoon in it and stir!
Patience is key with caramel, and I think you´re better off doing it over a low heat for longer, rather than risking the caramel burning. You need to watch and listen to your caramel. At first, it will boil rapidly with loads of bubbles. As the water starts to evaporate, the caramel will start to thicken, become golden brown and the bubbling will slowly start to die down. This is when you wanted to be watching the caramel like a hawk, as it can turn really quickly from a golden-brown colour to being burnt.
The caramel you make can then be used to make the toffee for the icing, the pecan praline and the toffee apple decorations.
More Cake Recipes To Impress
Do you have a fun event coming up and want to make a cake that will impress your guests?! And , more importantly, feed them all? Then check out some of my other recipes below!
- Checkerboard Cake with Chocolate and Vanilla Sponge and Chocolate Ganache
- Mary Berry´s Frosted Walnut Layer Cake
- Black Forest Gâteau | Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte
- Swiss Role Cake with Strawberries and Cream
- Spiced Carrot Cake with an Orange Cream Cheese Frosting
- Lemon and Poppy Seed Bundt Cake
- German “Bee Sting Cake” | Bienenstich
- Strawberry Flan Cake | Erdbeerboden
Sticky Toffee Cake with Pecan Praline
Recipe
Ingredients:
FOR THE STICKY TOFFEE CAKE:
- 125g soft pitted dates, roughly chopped
- 5 tbsp apple juice
- 325g butter, at room temperature
- 250g soft light brown sugar
- 5 M eggs, beaten
- 300g self-raising flour
- ¼ tsp baking
- 2 tbsp ground cinnamon
- 2 tsp mixed spice
FOR THE CARAMEL TOFFEE BUTTERCREAM:
- 175g golden caster sugar
- 3 tbsp water
- 175g double cream
- 175g butter
- 100g icing sugar
- 125g full-fat soft cheese
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
FOR THE PECAN PRALINE:
- 100g caster sugar
- 4 tbsp water
- 80g pecans
FOR THE TOFFEE APPLES:
- 3-4 large sour apples
- 175g golden caster sugar
- 3 tbsp water
YOU WILL ALSO NEED:
- 3 x 20cm round sandwich tins
- Stick blender (optional)
- Large mixing bowl
- Electric hand whisk
- Good-quality pot
- Wooden or metal skewers
- Palette knife
Method:
- Start by roughly chopping the dates and adding them to a small pot along with the apple juice. Simmer for 5-10 minutes until the dates have softened and the mixture starts to thicken. Blend using a stick blender until smooth (or mash really well with a fork), then set aside to cool.
- Preheat the oven to 180°C. Grease the three sandwich tins and line the base with some baking paper.
- To make the cake, start by beating the butter for a few minutes until light and fluffy. Add the sugar and cream together for a further 4-5 minutes. Gradually add the eggs, a little at a time, beating well in between each addition. Add in a heaped tablespoon of the weighed-out flour with the last few additions to prevent the mixture from curdling.
- Carefully fold in the rest of the dry ingredients until fully combined, then fold in the cooled date mixture and make sure it is evenly distributed throughout the cake batter.
- Evenly divide the cake mix between the three tins (about 400g of batter per tin). Bake the cakes in the preheated oven for 18-22 minutes, until golden brown and springy to the touch. The cakes should be starting to shrink away from the sides of the tin and a skewer inserted should come out clean. Leave the cakes to cool in their tin for about 20 minutes, then turn onto a wire rack and leave to cool completely.
- In the meantime, prepare the toffee for the frosting. Place the cream into a small pot and the golden caster sugar and 3 tbsp of water into another. Gently heat the cream until just below boiling point, then remove from the heat. Place the sugar and water over a low heat until the sugar has completely dissolved. Then turn up the heat and boil until the mixture “goes quiet” and turns a golden-brown colour (see more tips above). Remove from the heat and quickly pour in the warmed cream and whisk until combined. Return to the heat and cook over a medium heat for about 1-2 minutes until thickened, whisking constantly. Transfer to a heatproof bowl and chill in the fridge for about an hour.
- To make the pecan praline, place the sugar and water into a small pot and make a caramel as described above. Once the caramel is a nice golden-brown colour, add in the pecan nuts and swirl them in the caramel until coated. Pour the mix into a baking tray lined with non-stick baking paper. Leave to set until firm.
- For the buttercream, beat the butter for 3-4 minutes until pale and fluffy. Gradually whisk in the icing sugar and beat for a further 1-2 minutes. Then add in the cream cheese and vanilla extract. Finally, pour in the cooled toffee caramel mixture and whisk the buttercream until everything is well combined. Chill in the fridge to firm the buttercream up a bit so that it is good for spreading. This should take about 15-30 minutes.
- In the meantime, you can prepare your toffee apple decorations. Peel the apples, then use a melon baller to create 8-10 apple spheres. Pat them dry, then put each apple on the end of a wooden or metal skewer. Make a caramel using the water and sugar. Once ready, dip the apples in the caramel, then leave the caramel to harden with the apples hanging over the side of your work surface. Use a heavy chopping board to weigh the ends of the skewers down and hold the apple in place, and don´t forget to put some old newspapers on the floor below to catch any caramel drips!
- Use a sharp knife to roughly chop up the pecan praline.
- To assemble the cake place one of the cakes onto a serving plate and spread over about a third of the toffee buttercream. Scatter a third of the pecan praline over the buttercream, then place the second cake on top. Repeat once more and then put the last cake, bottom side up (so that you have a flat surface at the top) on. Cover the sides of the cake with a thin layer of buttercream (to create a “naked cake” effect) and spread the remaining buttercream over the top in an even layer.
- Finish by decorating the top of the cake with the remaining pecan praline and the toffee apples.
