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Article about how to eat dates:
Here are a few ways you could &mdash, and should &mdash, use them in the kitchen. 12 Delicious Ways To Use Fresh Dates. Bursting with flavor and goodness, dates are a highly prized fruit in the foodie world, especially amongst the health-conscious.

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Providing an excellent source of fiber, vitamins, and minerals, these bite-sized treats have an irresistible natural sweetness, and they're incredibly versatile too. Dates grow on date palm trees, with thrive in hot, dry areas, such as the Middle East, Asia, and Mexico. These fruits come in both fresh and dried form, with a wide range of different varieties sold around the world. Dried dates tend to be firmer in texture, with a somewhat wrinkled skin. On the other hand, fresh dates are much more moist, with a plumper, glossier appearance. They're also more likely to come unpitted, which means you'll need to remove the stones before eating them. One of the most popular varieties of fresh dates are Medjools, which can be found in most large supermarkets and health food stores. These are known for their melt-in-the-mouth texture and delicious caramel-like taste. Other types that are typically sold in fresh form include Barhi, Hayani, and Zahidi dates. Whichever variety you go for, these sweet little gems have a whole host of uses in the kitchen, and that's exactly what we're exploring today. From elegant appetizers to decadent desserts, dates can fit seamlessly into both sweet and savory recipes. So, let's take a look at some of the very best ways to enjoy them. 1. Stuff them. Being pleasingly bite-sized, and having a conveniently boat-like shape with sliced open and pitted, dates are the perfect candidates for stuffing. Whether you're looking to craft a platter of sophisticated canapés, or whip up a quick snack, there are endless filling options to explore. To prep your dates for stuffing, cut them lengthways down the middle, and carefully remove the stone. You can either cut the dates all the way through, splitting them into two halves, or leave one side uncut and simply open them out to form a single, larger pocket. Next, choose your fillings. One of our go-to recipes is pecan-stuffed dates with balsamic, which offers a wonderful combination of sweet and savory flavors. Here, we use cream cheese, but other types of cheese such as brie, mascarpone, or goat cheese also make fantastic additions. Nuts are also a popular choice — think walnuts, almonds, and pistachios, which can be left whole or finely chopped and scattered atop the date. If something sweeter is more your style, dates and chocolate are a match made in heaven. Try splitting open and pitting the dates, spooning in some creamy peanut butter, and closing them back up again. Then, dip the dates into some melted dark chocolate, and pop them in the fridge until the chocolate has set. Or, to really amp up the sweetness, you could even try stuffing the dates with mini marshmallows, Nutella, or cream cheese frosting. 2. Make some oaty snack bars. When you're aiming to keep refined sugar to a minimum in your homemade sweet treats, dates are always great to have on hand. The naturally occurring sugars in these fruits are perfect for sweetening recipes, whilst adding a boost of nutrients too. Medjool dates are a star ingredient in our no-bake dates and oats snack bars, providing plenty of caramel flavor and stickiness. Here, they help to bind the other elements together, whilst sweetening everything up nicely. Before combining the dates with the other ingredients, you'll need to soak them in boiling water for about 15 minutes. This will makes it easier to blend them into a smooth puree. Once you've blitzed them up in a food processor, mix the dates with oats, slivered almonds, and cacao nibs. Then, warm the wet ingredients — almond butter, maple syrup, and cinnamon — in a saucepan, and pour the mixture over the dry ingredients. Stir well, and press everything into a parchment-lined square baking pan, before popping it into the freezer for 30 minutes or so. Once it's firmed up, slice the block in bars, and your wholesome, date-sweetened snacks are ready to enjoy. 3. Blend them into a smoothie. Dates aren't just great for crafting delicious snacks and desserts, they'll also work fantastically when blended into drinks. With their sweet but mild taste, you'll find that these fruits pair beautifully with a wide range of other smoothie and milkshake ingredients. To make a healthy three-ingredient date milkshake, start by soaking fresh dates in boiling water for about 15 minutes. Drain the water away, and add the dates to a blender along with some frozen bananas, and a generous splash of milk (or plant-based milk). Blitz everything up until nice and smooth, pour the milkshake into a glass, and slurp away. If you feel like concocting something a little more fancy, try our date, tahini, and cardamom smoothie. For this, you'll blend the soaked dates with sliced bananas, tahini, soy milk, cinnamon, cardamom, and a handful of crushed iced. We love to top the drink off with some crunchy cacao nibs, too. Dates would also taste wonderful alongside tangy berries or citrus fruits, and other creamy add-ins like peanut butter or coconut milk. Another great way to use dates is in a homemade hot chocolate. Just blitz dates, dark chocolate, cocoa powder, and milk in a blender until smooth, then warm the mixture in a saucepan on the stove top before serving in your favorite mug. Feel free to finish with a generous swirl of whipped cream or scattering of grated chocolate. 4. Wrap them in bacon. The intense sweetness of dates, and the deeply savory, smoky taste of bacon couldn't be more different, which is why these ingredients balance each other so brilliantly. Bacon-wrapped dates are the ultimate salty-sweet appetizer, great for everyday snacking, or serving to dinner party guests. First, grab your dates of choice. These could be gloriously golden Deglet Noor dates, which have a firm texture and honey-like flavor, or, if you prefer a softer consistency, go for dark, sticky Medjools. Make a cut down the length of each date, remove the stone, and stuff a small chunk of Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese inside. You could absolutely switch this out for blue cheese, cheddar, feta, or goat cheese if preferred. Next, wrap a thin strip of bacon around the outside. Feel free to poke a toothpick through the date to secure the bacon in place. Arrange the bacon-wrapped dates onto a parchment-lined baking sheet, and bake until the bacon has crisped up nicely — about 20 to 25 minutes. And, for a final pop of color, try scattering over some finely chopped parsley or chives or before serving. 5. Bake them into oatmeal cookies. Can at oatmeal cookie really be complete without raisins? The answer is yes! Dates can serve as an excellent replacement here, adding sweet, chewy goodness to every bite. They offer a more complex flavor, and softer texture than raisins, and they can be subbed in at a one to one ratio by weight. Just made sure to chop the dates finely beforehand. We recommend following our classic oatmeal raisin cookie recipe, and simply switching out the half cup of raisins for an equal measure of finely chopped dates. It can also help to toss the dates with a spoonful of flour, to prevent them from clumping together. You'll start by creaming butter and sugar, then beating in an egg and a splash of vanilla extract. Next come the dry ingredients — flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, and oats. And of course, those delicious caramel-like date morsels. There's also the option to combine the dates with other cookie add-ins such as chopped nuts, pretzels pieces, chocolate chunks, or peanut butter chips. Once you've mixed up the dough, scoop out small portions, roll them into balls, and arrange them on a parchment-lined baking sheet. After 10 minutes or so in the oven, they should be perfectly chewy-crisp and golden brown. 6. Add them to a tagine. There's no one way to make a tagine, but this beloved Moroccan stew typically features meat or fish, vegetables and/or fruits, all slow-cooked to perfection with a medley of spices and aromatics. Dates make for a particularly tasty addition to this versatile dish, bringing a unique sweetness and texture, that complement the other elements of the dish effortlessly. You can't go wrong with classic lamb tagine. This meat has a rich, savory flavor, which works wonderfully alongside warming spices and fresh fruits. Our favorite method, which is adapted from a recipe by chef Alan Jackson, involves incorporating both dates and almonds into the tagine. The dish starts with sauteed onions. We then brown chunks of lamb meat with turmeric, ginger, and cinnamon.













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