Dates

[lindag]

I bought a package of medjool dates in order to make a holiday date nut quick bread.

These are whole and I'm wondering what the best way is to chop them (I have removed the seeds).

Do I do this with a knife? or in the FP?

 

[blue_dolphin]

I like to use scissors

[Anna N]

8 minutes ago, blue_dolphin said:

I like to use scissors

I find scissors work the best and I usually coat blades with A drop or two of olive or other oil. 

[chromedome]

Also a fan of the oiled scissors for this. Date nut bread is next week for me.

[lindag]

Scissors it is!

 

[Smithy]

Let me know how the scissors work! I've always pitted them, then laid them in a heap on the cutting board and chopped them with a large knife the way I would chop nuts. Never thought about oiled scissors until I spotted this topic.

[lindag]

Hah!  The cutting up of the dates turned out to be rather troublesome.  I started out with the oiled scissors.  Pretty soon my hand was hurting.  Then I moved on to a sharp oiled knife.  That was very slow going.  Then I tried the food processor; that went somewhat better, however, the dates were pretty tough.  I added some rolled oats to the mix in order to keep the dates from clumping.  Those dates really gave my Cuisinart a workout.  It took a lot of pulsing to finally get them chopped to a reasonable size.  Maybe these were not the freshest of dates?

[heidih]

17 minutes ago, lindag said:

.  Maybe these were not the freshest of dates?

I think you hit the nail on the head

[blue_dolphin]

47 minutes ago, lindag said:

Maybe these were not the freshest of dates?

 

Sorry that was such a tough job!  I often steam dates for a while to soften them up if they are older but it's always a balancing act as that can make them more sticky, too. 

I hope the end product was worth the effort. 

[chromedome]

42 minutes ago, lindag said:

Hah!  The cutting up of the dates turned out to be rather troublesome.  I started out with the oiled scissors.  Pretty soon my hand was hurting.  Then I moved on to a sharp oiled knife.  That was very slow going.  Then I tried the food processor; that went somewhat better, however, the dates were pretty tough.  I added some rolled oats to the mix in order to keep the dates from clumping.  Those dates really gave my Cuisinart a workout.  It took a lot of pulsing to finally get them chopped to a reasonable size.  Maybe these were not the freshest of dates?

It's always a slog, with any of the three methods. I probably should have mentioned that it helps to have scissors with big handles and small blades (better mechanical advantage) and as far as that goes, my hands are probably bigger than yours (same thing).

It's quite possible the dates were not especially fresh, though there's variance between cultivars as well. It's a tradeoff...a drier date is a firmer date and can be harder to cut, but a fresher, moister date is stickier so they're no picnic either. If you suspect they're past their prime and a bit dry you can steam them to soften them up, and then let them cool before chopping. That'll help. If you overdo it, and steam them to the point that they turn to paste when you put them in the Cuise, give them a couple of days and then try again.

[AAQuesada]

Such a blessing to be able to buy dates directly from farmers at the local Farmers Market. Depending on the time of year we sometimes have 3  vendors! Speaking of dates I really want to try and replicate a local restaurant (Gjusta) that does a Miso Date cookie that is pretty fantastic.

 

Bautista Date Ranch

 

Flying Disk Ranch

 

 

[heidih]

54 minutes ago, AAQuesada said:

Such a blessing to be able to buy dates directly from farmers at the local Farmers Market. Depending on the time of year we sometimes have 3  vendors! Speaking of dates I really want to try and replicate a local restaurant (Gjusta) that does a Miso Date cookie that is pretty fantastic.

 

Should you crack the recipe code would love to hear.  Browned butter maybe?

[AAQuesada]

4 minutes ago, heidih said:

Should you crack the recipe code would love to hear.  Browned butter maybe?

 

I'm pretty sure they do some sort of miso butter.  (whip softened butter with miso in a food processor) -its a soft cookie so i'm guessing starting with a sugar cookie base recipe.

[shain]

A bit late here - but my 2 cents.

First, if your dates are firm, they are probably a bit old (that should be fine for baking, it's just moisture loss, only less fun to eat straight).

If you have a large amount of dates to chop, you can de-seed then freeze them. They won't freeze solid, and will be easy to chop either by hand or a food processor.

I also rarely use majhoul for baking. They are nice for eating because they are super plump and sweet - I love them stuffed with a piece of toasted walnut, with a cup of Turkish coffee. But they have mild flavor, and can be too soft when cooked. Dayri is really nice for baking - with caramel like flavor and less sweet, Deglet Nour is nice - floral and honey like. Try them all

[Katie Meadow]

Mmm. I see a Date Nut Bread in my very near future. I haven't made one for a few months. In early pandemic times I was making it every other week, like some mysterious addiction. The King Arthur recipe is excellent, by the way. I guess if you are making a multitude you need to find an easy way to chop them. I've come to the conclusion that the best dates for date and nut bread are dates that are not too fresh and not too dry. Just right. 

[teonzo]

You can use a tool for slicing hot dogs / wurst sausages, all pizzerias have one to speed up the cutting process. This is the first result via google. They work well for dates, dried figs and other similar stuff.

 

 

 

Teo

 

[Smithy]

I just finished pitting and chopping dates for my husband's fruit salad. The dates were a blend of barhi and medjool, admittedly not the freshest in either case. I think I'll stick with my method: pit, then lay flat and chop with a large knife. It didn't take long. I realize that in a professional kitchen and with professional-scale quantities a faster method might be necessary, but for my purposes this was much faster than scissors.

 

 

(No lectures about cutting toward my thumb, please. The dates are soft enough to do that with impunity. )