Dates For Sticky Toffee Pudding | Ask Nigella.com (2024)

Our answer

Nigella's Sticky Toffee Pudding (from AT MY TABLE) has a sponge cake made with dates and topped with a toffee sauce made from butter, sugar and treacle. It is a slightly darker, more grown up version of the traditional Sticky Toffee Pudding. Dates are the fruit of the date palm and the fruits are usually partially dried after they are harvested. There are several varieties but Medjool and Deglet Noor (or Deglet Nour) are probably the best known varieties. We understand that in Portugese dates may be called "tâmara" or "dátil".

Dates are very high in sugar, which helps to sweeten the sponge. Prunes are dried plums and although they are sweet, they are not as sweet as dates. We understand that it is possible to use cooked prunes in baking but unfortunately we doubt that you can just switch the dates for prunes weight for wieght and so we are unfortunately unable to advise on using prunes as an alternative in the Sticky Toffee Pudding.