ISLAMABAD: If there is one food synonymous with Ramadan the world over regardless of culture, language or region, it is the date. The significance of dates is tied to the belief that Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) broke his fasts with the fruits and thus eating dates in the holy month of Ramadan is a tradition that Muslims have followed for centuries.
But now that Ramadan has come and gone this year, what do we do with all the leftover dates? Here are six ideas:
Stuffed dates
Stuffed dates (image via Lazy Cat Kitchen)
If your dates are seeded, pit the seed right out and stuff them with pistachios and peanuts, dried fruits, citrus peels, tahini, marzipan, soft cheeses, coconut flakes and chocolate. There’s no way you can go wrong with these dainty hors d’oeuvres.
The dipped date
Dipped dates (image via The Endless Meal)
If you don’t want to stuff your dates, dip them instead — in molten chocolate, milk, dark or white, and then sprinkle generously with crushed candies or nuts. If you want to go the extra mile, stuff the date with nuts or soft cheese first and then dip it in chocolate. There’s isn’t a more flamboyant snack out there than that.
Date breads
Date and walnut loaf (image via Torey Avey)
Date and walnut loaves, date cake, and Britain’s sticky toffee pudding are just three of the ways bread and dates come together with magical results. The sticky toffee pudding is a signature dish from Great Britain where dates are chopped up small and stirred into the bread. And there are few ways to go wrong with the date and walnut loaf, which if well-wrapped will go a week and can be frozen.
Using dates as a sweetener
A date smoothie (image via Food52)
Dates are not only naturally high in sugar and fiber, their sweetness, a distinct caramel-like flavour, makes them a popular choice as a replacement for sugar. Date sugar is made from dehydrated dates that are ground into a granulated, sugar-like consistency. You can also just use raw date, blending them into cookies and protein bars, or turning them into caramel. Finally, you can make syrup out of dates, boiling them and reducing the liquid until it has the consistency of honey.
Energy bars
Date energy bars (image via Kitch)
Many foodies, especially health conscious ones, are now also using dates as a base and taste maker for energy bars. Most energy and protein bars available in the market are filled with chemicals, preservatives and heaps of sugar but many brands are now turning to dates to make them healthier. Mixed with nuts and power foods like chia and flax, at home energy bars are cost efficient, yummy and put dates to good use.
In tagine
Lamb tagine with dates (image via Kevin is Cooking)
Dates can be given a savoury twist too, by being used as a central ingredient in tagine, a slow cooked dish of meat or chicken topped with chopped dates and cooked in a clay pot in northern African countries.
