The Charmed Kitchen

After a friend mentioned making date syrup it got me to thinking. I had read about date syrup before but never made it. I did have a big bag of dates at home, so I thought I would give it a try. The method is the same with slight variations on all the information I found when looking for directions. The dates are soaked and cooked in water to soften, then they are mashed or pureed, then strained. That’s pretty much it, but it wasn’t exactly that simple. I learned a lot after my first attempt that I will apply to the next time I make date syrup. There will definitely be another time.

This syrup is so tasty!!! The end result was really special. The syrup is a beautiful color and tastes wonderful. It can be used anywhere you might use any other syrup. Drizzle over pancakes, waffles or French toast for starters. You can also use date syrup in beverages, the way you might add honey or other sweeteners. I haven’t tried baking with it yet, but I have baked with maple syrup and honey so I see it have some real creative uses. I did add some to a salad dressing I made in place of a little honey and it added  a nice sweetness. Would be a nice addition to a homemade barbecue sauce, too.

So here is the directions on how to make your own date syrup. A bit of work, but totally worth it!!

Date Syrup

1 lb. pitted dates

4 cups of water- plus more as needed

½ t. salt

In large pot bring the water  and salt to a boil. Remove from the heat and add the dates. Let them soak in the hot water for 30 minutes or up to an hour. Return pot to the heat and cook the dates, covered, at a simmer for another 30-45 minutes. This partly depends on how dry/old your dates are. The softer they get, the better. Once they are cooled down a bit you can puree them. I used an immersion blender, so I pureed them right in the pot. You can puree in an blender, too. The mixture was so thick I added water to make the mixture the texture of thin applesauce. You have to boil extra water off later, but straining works better if the mixture is thinner. Once the date puree is cooled down enough to handle- it can be warm- but not hot you will want to strain it. I lined a large strainer with cheesecloth. I set it over a bowl and waited. Nothing happened. So I picked up the bag twisted the cheesecloth over the top and squeezed. Then it worked great. Liquid poured out in a steady stream. The harder you squeeze, the more syrup you will get.  Dividing the mixture into two smaller batches would make it easier to work with. Once you have squeezed all the liquid out that you can place the syrup in a clean pot and start to simmer to reduce the volume until the syrup thickens to the desired thickness. Keep in mind, the syrup also thickens as it cools and even more when stored in the fridge. Watch it until it get to the viscosity you like in syrup. If you cook it down too much it will turn into a caramel, so better to stop and then cook down more if you want it thicker than to over reduce it. If it gets too thick, you can add more water to it. As it boils, skim foam off as it forms on the top. You can also drain cooked and cooled syrup though a fine strainer to remove any foam. you should end up with about 12-14 ounces of syrup. Store in the fridge and use in a few weeks.

The Pulp

When you get done squeezing you have this date pulp leftover. Some recipes suggest just tossing it, but I couldn’t get myself to do that. You can use it as a spread on toast but there was a fair amount of it. I knew I could never eat enough toast to use it all. I put it in an ice cube tray and froze it. Then I popped out the cubes and returned them to the freezer in a bag. Now I can use it in small amounts once I figure out what I want to do with it. I could see adding it to sauces or dressings.       

Thanks, Beth, for the idea.