Date paste doesn’t sound appealing, but if you’re in the mood for a sweet something that isn’t devoid of nutrition, knowing how to work with it is a must.
Where to Buy It
Commercially produced date paste isn’t widely available. If your store carries it, it’s likely to be with natural baking supplies or possibly with specialty groceries from the Middle East. If you can’t find it processed, don’t worry! It’s a cinch to make. Most grocery stores carry whole, pitted dates in both the produce section and with specialty foods from the Middle East.
How to Make It
This isn’t our first time in the date paste rodeo. We’ve got a date paste recipe you can bookmark or print out for your recipe box. If you’ve had trouble with it in the past, we’ve also got more in-depth guidance on making date paste for you.
How to Use It
Think of date paste as brown sugar’s very moist cousin. You can swap it 1:1 anywhere a recipe calls for brown sugar. In cakes and quickbreads, it will tend to create a slightly denser and delightfully moist final product. It’s fantastic in muffin-top-like cookies or sheet bakes. You can use it to sweeten fruit for tarts and cobblers. It’s an amazing binder for energy bars. One of our team’s absolute favorite ways to use it is in truffle-like nibbles.
