This week is a little bit crazy in our house, Rob is working extra long hours and the clinic is super busy with everyone trying to fit in consultations before our bub arrives. When our to-do list increases I like to prep – have meals decided on, shopping done, veggie draw full and snacks everywhere to pull out when needed.
With our busy week and long hours, I wanted to whip up something that was delicious, a little bit sweet for afternoon energy drop while also ensuring it was nutrient-dense so we were getting the most benefit from our food.
It’s no secret that I have a love affair with nut butters … I love them all! peanut butter, roasted almond, pistachio, cashew, hazelnut, coconut – they are all so delicious! so naturally they needed to be included as well – because when food tastes good, we are happier for it.
What I love about this recipe:
Firstly I love how simple it was, I quickly made them while dinner was simmering next to me.. and licking the bowl after we were done was an extra bonus!
From a nutritional perspective, each nut contains its own unique mineral content (so variety is key) as well as good fat, protein and fiber. Dates are a delicious source of fiber. Research suggests that women in their last few weeks of pregnancy should eat fresh dates daily to help ripen the cervix! We know that dates (fresh or dried) are high in fructose – also known as fruit sugars, this fructose can cause a rise in blood glucose levels, which can be a good thing (not always) however by adding the nut butter to the dates we can have a slower release of this energy which means the blood glucose spike isn’t as drastic, so we overall feel better. The addition of cinnamon is an extra little support to help support those blood glucose levels.
The addition of the chocolate, well that was just for fun! and well worth the extra step – however if you are time poor just leave that step out.
This Recipe is Vegan, Raw, Gluten free, Dairy Free, Soy Free, Refined Sugar Free
INGREDIENTS
+ fresh Medjool dates – as many as you feel like prepping in one go
+ a good quality nut butter – for these I did half crunchy peanut butter and half roasted almond butter
+ chocolate of choice – around 100g for 250g of dates
+ pinch of cinnamon
+ pinch of salt flakes
METHOD
1. Use a sharp knife and cut into each date, ensuring not to go all the way through but just enough to remove the hard pit.
2. Place the pitted dates onto a lined baking tray.
3. Using a small spoon, butter knife or get fancy and use a piping bag and add the nut butter into the middle of each date. Place onto the tray and place into the fridge to harden – you can also place into the freezer if you are impatient like me.
4. While your dates are in the fridge, melt your chocolate. I did the double boiler method over the stove (boiling a small amount of water in a pot, placing a glass dish over without letting the boiling water touch the bottom of the bowl).
5. Once your chocolate is melted add in 1/2 a teaspoon of cinnamon and stir through.
6. Remove dates from the fridge and one by one place into the melted chocolate, using a spoon to coat them in chocolate.
7. Return the chocolate-covered dates to the lined tray, sprinkle with salt flakes and place into the fridge to harden. Once hardened, store in an airtight glass container and enjoy.
A serve would be 2 dates.