Recipes with Dates

[FaustianBargain]

I came across an apicius recipe for stuffed dates...blanch almonds..pit the dates and stuff the almonds into the dates...honey, rosewater and saffron boiled together and the dates are left soaking in the syrup...after 24 hours, remove the dates from the syrup..sprinkle sugar over the dates...they keep for a while..

romans...sua cuique voluptas

what else can be done with dates?

[Verjuice]

I spent the better part of the morning lounging in the backyard with a huge sticky pile of ripe Saudi dates on a tray in front of me thinking about the very same thing. When I lived in the U.A.E., dates were cooked into everything, but my favorites were a rich date cake with walnuts (like a gooey fudge brownie with a wallop of molasses and butterscotch flavors where the chocolate would otherwise be-- worthless however unless you have excellent dates) and basmati rice with dates, caramelized onionc, almons and saffron. I also like dates roasted with orange peel and stuffed with mascarpone, and Claudia Fleming has a recipe for roasted dates with coconut sorbet and candies coconut. Dates are awesome mixed with amonds or pecans as a filling for baklava, and they marry well with other Middle Eastern flavors like cardamom, anise, honey, orange flower water and rosewater. Date cookies. Date shakes. And I love a good oatmeal bar with a date filling. They make great cinnamon-pecan date bars at Pasqual's here in Santa Fe.

[FaustianBargain]

oh yum...i was actually wondering if dates can be used as stuffing for meat?....like we stuff prunes for pork?..maybe even stuffed dates as stuffing!

[kiliki]

Date shakes. Particularly coffee date shakes. Yum.

[Verjuice]

Date shakes. Particularly coffee date shakes. Yum.

Yeah- dates go really well with coffee. Adding cardamom to the combo makes it even better, I think. For years, my afternoon snack was a tiny cup of amber-hued cardamom qahweh (Arabic coffee) and a fistful of soft, half-golden half-chestnut brown dates just picked from our garden.

We used to stuff quail and goat with dried dates all the time. Earthier, gamier meats work best with the caramel-like nuances of the dates, in my opinion.

[gingerly]

Verjuice,i've been downing the most delicious 'date syrup'with a lot of things.would you know if this syrup is made from the sap of the date palm or from the fruit?

[sparrowgrass]

Dates stuffed with half a pecan are my favorites. Also, I use chopped dates instead of chocolate chips in oatmeal cookies.

[Verjuice]

Verjuice,i've been downing the most delicious 'date syrup'with a lot of things.would you know if this syrup is made from the sap of the date palm or from the fruit?

Date syrup is made from the dates themselves, along with date paste and liquid date sugar. Date sugar is made by pulverizing dried dates.

In the U.A.E., there is a Saudi Arabian franchise called Bateel and they have the most amazing date confections; dates molded into truffles with nuts or chocolate or coconut or whatever. They're just beautiful. They also make a sparkling date champagne that you'd probably love if you dig date syrup.

[gingerly]

thanks Verjuice-sparkling date juice!be still my hyperactive pulse

[mojoman]

I'm making a baked, stuffed date dish.

I think the dish would be best if the dates met the following criteria (in order):

1. Minimally stringy

2. Sweet

3. Large

Which variety is best?

Thanks!

Edited October 17, 2007 by mojoman (log)

[kpzachary]

Medjool dates are the best you can get. I think they will meet all of your requirements.

[mojoman]

Thx kpzachary. Medjool it is.

Edited October 17, 2007 by mojoman (log)

[infernooo]

http://www.seaviewsales.com/varieties1.html

[jrshaul]

I have no real experience with chopped dried dates, but at $4/lb at Aldi's, there's strong incentive to change that. However, outside perhaps of a modified plum pudding, I'm short for inspiration. I've had some lovely fig jams made with black tea - perhaps I could finagle something similar?

[pbear]

No recipe, but I've had some pretty good cookies (from others) made with chopped dates.

[liuzhou]

I have, in the past made something very similar to this: Pork with Dates and Dried Apricots

If you are not a pork eater, there are lots of recipes for lamb or beef tagines using dates. More.

[Nayan Gowda]

If you have a sweet tooth, then try this recipe for Sticky Toffee Pudding

[patrickamory]

Wonder if you could adapt sali boti or sali jardaloo murgh for dates?

[andiesenji]

You can use them in bran muffins, other muffins, pancakes, etc. There are several recipes for date puddings but I tried this one last year and it is excellent.

You can also substitute them for any dried fruit in steamed puddings.

My Moroccan cookbooks have several recipes for chicken with dates - I found this one a few years ago and have prepared it several times for guests - it is a great buffet dish because it just gets better as it keeps warm in a heated buffet server. I set out rice, couscous and broad noodles over which to serve it.

However, the chopped dates do dry out more rapidly than whole dates. If this happens, don't soak them, steam them, which will rehydrate and soften them perfectly without adding excess liquid to your recipe.

A Lebanese friend serves a dish made with lamb and dates - I don't care for lamb so have never made it but people who like lamb say it is very good, very rich.

Edited December 29, 2012 by andiesenji (log)

[ninagluck]

why not fill them with creamcheese or wrap bacon around and fry as an appetizer?

[huiray]

Are Chinese "Red dates" (Jujubes; Ziziphus ziziphus) included in this topic?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jujube

(edited)

Edited December 29, 2012 by huiray (log)

[jrshaul]

Thanks for all the suggestions! I especially like the pork with dates - the shoulder cuts are highly economical.

[JoNorvelleWalker]

Twice in the past couple months I've prepared Paula Wolfert's recipe for lamb tagine with dates. For the most recent batch I had the butcher cut a whole lamb shoulder into about a dozen chunks.

[Goatjunky]

My husband just helped a man from our church with a big move. The other two people who offered to help never showed up. He works as management at a local date farm and as a gesture of thanks has sent us an incredibly large amount of dates and other produce. I recognize the medjool and deglets, but will have to ask about the rest. There are dates stuffed with almonds, rolled in coconut, etc. Plus a bunch of citrus and grapes. I will never be able to eat all these dates in the near future. I can gift some, but am looking forideas such as something i can put up in cans maybe? Date bars and bread come to mind also. I have no idea how to best store them. What savory dishes come to mind for you?

[Kerry Beal]

Sauteed Dates that we had at Lolita in Cleveland when we attended the Heartland Gathering.