Sticky Toffee Pudding Cookies

Instructions

For the Vanilla Bean Custard Buttercream

Start by making the frosting so it's ready to use once the cookies are done baking.
Measure out 3/4 cup of milk, and from this take 1 tbsp. Add the 1 tbsp of milk to a large bowl along with the egg yolks, sugar, cornstarch, salt, and vanilla. Whisk until combined and a pale-yellow color.
(It will be thick at first but will get smooth as you whisk.)
3/4 cup (180 ml) whole milk, 2 egg yolks, 1/2 cup (100 g) granulated white sugar, 3 tbsp (24 g) cornstarch , pinch of salt, 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
In a medium saucepan, heat the rest of the milk over medium-low heat just until it’s steaming.
Add in 1/4 of the heated milk to the egg yolk/sugar mixture while stirring vigorously. Then, add the rest in and stir to combine.
Transfer the mixture to the saucepan. Heat over medium-low heat and cook for 6-8 minutes, whisking continuously, until the mixture is very thick and soft peaks form.
(Half way through if it is getting too hot and starts to get lumpy, remove it from the heat, whisk vigorously until smooth, then return to heat to continue cooking until thick.)
Once it's thick, remove the pastry cream from the heat and transfer it to a bowl. Add in the butter and mix to combine. Place plastic wrap right on top of the pastry cream to prevent a skin from forming. Chill it in the fridge until completely cold.
2 tbsp (28 g) unsalted butter, cold and cut in cubes (for the pastry cream)
Add the larger portion of butter and pinch of salt to a large bowl. Mix with an electric mixer on high speed for about 5 minutes until the butter is pale in color and very fluffy.
3/4 cup (168 g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature (for the frosting), pinch of salt
Add in the chilled pastry cream and mix on medium speed until smooth. Set aside for later use. (Just cover with plastic wrap and leave on the counter at room temperature.)

For the Toffee Sauce

Add the butter and brown sugar to a medium saucepan. Bring it to a simmer over medium heat and let it simmer for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally.
(It should look very bubbly and “alive looking”. The mixture will go from just looking like separated melted butter and melted brown sugar to incorporated and very bubbly when it's ready.)
1/2 cup (110 g) light brown sugar, packed, 6 tbsp (84 g) unsalted butter
Reduce the heat to medium-low heat and whisk in the cream. Let the mixture simmer for 3-4 minutes until thicker.
1/2 cup (120 ml) heavy cream (double cream)
Remove the toffee sauce from the heat and mix in the vanilla and salt.
1/2 tsp vanilla bean paste, pinch of salt
Pour the hot toffee sauce into a bowl and let it cool on the counter to room temperature for later use on the cookies.

For the Brown Sugar Date Cookies

Yay it's time to make the cookies! (You're doing great!!)
Preheat the oven to 350 ℉ (175 ℃). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
Remove the pits and roughly chop the dates and add them to a food processor, along with the molasses. Grind together until completely smooth with no large chunks of dates. This part is a bit tedious, but eventually it will all blend together. It will also be very sticky! (Like the name implies :) )
1/2 cup (100 g) Medjool dates, 6-9 dates depending on size (I highly recommend weighing them!), 1/3 cup (113 g) unsulphured molasses
In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, salt, and baking soda. Set aside the flour mixture.
2 1/4 cups (281 g) all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled, 3/4 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp baking soda
To a large bowl, add the softened butter and brown sugar. Cream together with an electric mixer on high speed for 1-2 minutes until very light and fluffy.
3/4 cup (168 g) unsalted butter, softened, 3/4 cup (165 g) light brown sugar, packed
Then add in the egg yolks, vanilla and date/molasses mixture. Mix on medium speed until combined and fluffy, about 1-2 minutes.
2 egg yolks, at room temperature, 2 tsp vanilla bean paste
Add in the dry ingredients. Mix on low speed just until combined.
(At first the dough may be a little softer than normal cookie dough, but let it rest in the bowl on the counter for ~10 minutes and the flour should have absorbed all the liquids making it easier to scoop and roll.)
Scoop the dough with a 2 tbsp cookie scoop, and roll them into balls. Then roll the dough balls in sugar.
Place the cookie dough balls at least 2 inches apart on the baking sheets. Slightly flatten each ball and form into a circle as best as you can. (See photo in the blog post above.)
Bake 6-8 cookies at a time.
Bake the cookies for 10-11 minutes, then let them cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes.
(When the cookies are straight out of the oven, scoot a large circular cookie cutter around them to give them a perfect circular shape.)
Transfer the baked cookies to a cooling rack to finish cooling.

Assembling the Cookies

Rewhip the frosting with an electric mixer on high speed until it's nice and fluffy again. Transfer it to a piping bag fit with a decorative tip. (I used a Wilton 2D tip.)
Once cooled, pipe frosting onto each cookie, then drizzle each with toffee sauce. Enjoy!
Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for about 3 days for best taste. You can also refrigerate them, but let them come to room temperature before enjoying. They can also be frozen for up to a month. Just make sure they are airtight for best storage!

Sticky Toffee Pudding Cookies

Ingredients

For the Vanilla Bean Custard Buttercream

For the Toffee Sauce

For the Brown Sugar Date Cookies

Instructions

For the Vanilla Bean Custard Buttercream

For the Toffee Sauce

For the Brown Sugar Date Cookies

Assembling the Cookies