We all love dates, no i’m not talking about walking on the beach with your wife, im talking about the fruit. Never heard of a date before? Just imagine a massive raisin.
Dates grown on palm trees which are native to the Middle East, although through modern horticulture they are now grown all over the world. Dates are rich in protective antioxidants and support gut health, bone health and are full of fibre and sugar.
For the vegans among us, and those who want a healthier source of sugar, dates, and date paste, and a super easy way to get some sweetness into your life and diet.
Finding ways to use dates can be hard but date paste is an easy and usable way to get it into a lot of recipes. We have listed 15 delicious date paste recipes for you to use in your everyday life. Read on to find out what made our list.
Breakfast muffins have become a staple in US breakfast cuisine and are the perfect accompaniment with your morning coffee. This recipe combines dates and oats to make a health and fibrous start to your day. These muffins are moist and really easy to make.
The dates make them almost savory in taste alongside the brown sugar which is quite nice during the breakfast time and certainly pairs well with coffee. Oats and dates are an energy providing combination that will get your day started right.
For a more savoury choice, pairing dates with their other natural pairing, cheese, can work wonders for at a veggie-centric dinner party. Dates are a usual suspect within a cheese board, their subtle sweetness is the perfect adversary to a feta or brie.
This recipe is super simple and can be made far in advance of any soireé you wish to swoon with these healthy but rich treats. Frankly, you can stuff a date with any cheese and it will be great, just don’t stuff your romantic date with cheese or they might go home.
This lovely recipe maker discovered the power of dates while hiding from a hurricane and raiding the pantry. She soon discovered that dates are in and raisins are out. For a little bit of effort, or if you have a lot of time to spare, these bagels are really worth the reward.
Both sweetly satisfying from the dates and the rich savory cinnamon flavors combine into a hearty but warming and tasty bagel that remains relatively healthy. All Americans love bagels, right?
Couscous is super quick and versatile to cook with, it covers so many cuisines and can deliver bold flavors with no qualms.
Often, you will find other fruits in couscous such as lemon tamarind and pomegranate, so the sweetness of dates is welcomed with open arms. This is a perfect accompaniment to any Middle Eastern or Greek dish.
If as a vegan you have ever tried vegan chocolate you might notice there is a sweetness or taste that is missing. In this smoothie, the date adds those complex caramel and rich notes that often lack in the vegan chocolate department.
In addition to a banana, this milkshake, while vegan, has all the complexity, richness, and creaminess you desire, all from our fruity friends. When slurping this milkshake you will find all the wonders of dairy chocolate, simply without the dairy, but with dates instead! Thank us later vegans.
For a little more effort and finesse, you can the equally nutritious and chewy delight of date swirl cookie. For a remarkably low ingredient recipe, the outcome is protein and energy rich while remaining healthy.
The chewy and caramel sweetness will have you shocked that they are only 160 calories. One or two of these in the morning can provide the boost you need in the morning and perfect dipping instruments for your coffee.
Sounds boring, but as we’ve established dates go incredibly well with coffee, and this date cake will have all the grannies fighting over the last slice. With a combination of nuts, this can provide some decent nutrition while also remaining a sweet treat.
With a pretty easy recipe that kids can get involved with which is great as they will gain an affinity for dates rather than the chocolate they are used to. A hit with kids and grannies, take this cake to your next coffee morning and you will blow your opposition away
This recipe not only creates a super healthy side salad to knock the socks off any salad-sceptic, but also teaches you how to create a sweet date and tamarind chutney.
Your baby spinach will get a serious makeover with the addition of tangy greek yogurt as well as the sweetness of the date chutney as well as pomegranate seeds. Spinach has never tasted so good, this is perfect for a side during a fancy dinner party.
Baklava is one of the pearls of the Middle East, a truly sumptuous after dinner treat that many won’t have tried but are guaranteed to love. Not only is it a sweet and tasty treat, it is vegan as well as being free from refined sugar and other nasties we get in sugary treats.
This recipe relies on date syrup for sweetness which still holds much of its nutritional profile, in addition to other nuts and more dates in the filling. If you haven’t had Baklawa before then we can’t recommend it more than we have. Pardon the pun, but this is a great no mess dessert for date nights.
We have all heard of the marshmallow treat of rocky road, no matter where you are from. This is a vegan take on the classic treat that involves dates as one of the main characters.
The sweetness of the dates is amazing with the nut butter you used and the chopped nuts, as well as some almond milk, this rock road recipe is a winner. This recipe is a winner as even though it is vegan, it still tastes and feels like fudge in your mouth all thanks to the sweetness and texture of dates.
Bet you never thought you could find dates in a main dish? Well stand corrected with this loveable chickpea curry that utilises the humble date. This frugal dish is beefed up with the protein and fibre rich date that also adds some sweetness to the dish almost how a tomato would in Indian cuisine.
The dates aren’t the star of the show but the sweet hum they add to the background is really delicious and you can’t get from anywhere else.
This is a bold but serious salad that is full of nutrition and flavor, this is sure to blow away the opposition when you bring this to your next barbeque or garden party.
This recipe is perfect for the fall months where dates are everywhere, but the fruitiness is also great as a summer salad. The pear’s slightly acrid taste is a perfect balance for the sweetness and richness of the date.
You are already exploring the world of exotic fruits, why not let the date introduce you to the Kumquat. The kumquat is sour but citrusy and is somewhere in between a grapefruit and an orange.
Nonetheless this is perfect for the sweetness of dates which create a chewy but sweet crust that cuts through the cream and citrus flavors. This will drop jaws when brought to a dinner party.
In the same vein, this ultimate vegan banana split recipe uses dates to add those complex chocolate flavors to the vegan chocolate sauce in this recipe. It goes perfectly with the sweetness of the banana and cuts through the ice cream.
I would even go as far to say that additions of chopped up dates in this recipe would add the chewy sweet element fudge could – whatever fudge can do dates can do better!
Date Wine may be a label that you reserve for that $15 bottle of red wine you get at the gas station when you forget it’s date night, but you can actually make date wine with dates (not unsuccessful dates, we mean the fruit). This is the big finale for our list because it is certainly a culinary investment.
But date wine, like blueberry wine, can have some desirable nutritional benefits that make us a little less guilty while drinking responsibly. This wine is really tart but has the humming sweetness of the date in the background, and makes for a perfect dessert wine.
Surprise your next date, with this homemade date wine, sure to secure that second date.
Hi, my name is Brett White, and I have a passion for cooking, and following a raw diet. Eating raw has completely changed how I view food, and has led me down a much healthier and happier path in life over the last three years.
Through Addicted To Veggies, I want to share with you my favorite raw recipes. From brownie recipes, to recipes containing pumpkin, my site is full of delicious and wonderful options to consider.
