Use this easy puree of softened dates in place of sugar. It adds a nutrient bounty to baked goods like muffins, quick breads, and cookies.
All you need is a blender or food processor—and you're good to go!
Estimated reading time: 6 minutes
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What you'll love about it...
- So simple—only two ingredients
- A naturally sweet, Whole30-approved alternative to sugar
- Supports bone strength and overall wellness with fiber, potassium, antioxidants, and more!
Ingredients
- Dates - Medjool dates work best. Drier varieties like Deglet Noor will take longer to soften.
- Boiling water
How to make it
1️⃣ Wash your hands, lathering with soap and rinsing with running water for 20 seconds, before starting.
2️⃣Place a packed cup of pitted dates into a bowl and pour hot water over them. Let sit and soften for 10 to 30 minutes depending on the type of date and how soft they are to begin with.
Note: You can also soften dates overnight in the refrigerator. Combine with room temperature water and cover. They will be ready to blend in the morning.
3️⃣Transfer water and dates to a blender container (affiliate link) or food processor (affiliate link) and blend until pureed. A stick blender (affiliate link) works fine although a regular blender or food processor (S-blade) is quicker.
4️⃣Use a spatula (affiliate link) to pack the paste into a storage container (affiliate link) that has at least an 8-ounce (cup) capacity if not using immediately in a recipe.
5️⃣Store in the refrigerator for up to a month. Freeze for 6 to 12 months. Note: The color of date paste darkens slightly after storage.
How to use it
Use in recipes as one to one (1:1) replacement for sugar.
- Baking: An easy cup for cup substitution in cakes, cookies, muffins, pancakes, baked oats, and quick breads. Try it in frostings and fillings, too!
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- Desserts: Mousses, puddings, pies.
- Sauces and marinades: Thin the paste to add a caramel flavor note to drizzles for noodle and grain bowls, or add it to protein marinades that call for honey, molasses, or brown sugar.
- Easy flavor boosts: Stir it into oatmeal, overnight oats, and chia puddings. Enjoy on a charcuterie board with cheeses and meats.
Try it in place of jam in a nut butter sandwich on whole-grain bread or toast. Almond butter and date paste sandwich? Yes!!
Nutrition Notes
🦴Better Bones: Dates are an excellent source of potassium and a good source of magnesium, key minerals for getting calcium into your bones and keeping it there.
They also contain about 6% of the Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) for calcium.
Plus, they are a good to excellent source of fiber and deliver iron, B vitamins, antioxidants, and isoflavones, plant-based nutrients which can help with menopause and also strengthen bones.
When eaten regularly, they benefit:
- Gut health (all that fiber)
- Heart health (lower cholesterol)
- Blood sugar regulation (fiber, lower glycemic index than sugar)
Dates have anti-inflammatory actions and also assist in fighting cancer with their antioxidants.
USDA nutrition facts are for 100g of dates.
Enjoy this thick date paste with almond butter as a sandwich on whole grain bread!
FAQ
You betcha! They have a lower glycemic index (GI), ~42-55, than refined sugar, ~65-70. Foods with a GI of 55 or less are considered low GI.
They generally have a lower GI than honey (~50 to 60) or maple syrup (~54 to 55).
However, dates and date paste are not a "free" food like stevia, monkfruit, and artificial sweeteners. Enjoy this sweetener in moderation.
A reliable starting ratio for date paste is 1 cup pitted dates to ½ cup water. This yields a thick, smooth paste that works well as a natural sweetener in baking.
After soaking the dates in hot water, blend with the water. If the paste is too thick and stiff, add more hot water a Tablespoon at a time until the desired consistency is reached.
This recipe has a thicker consistency and works well for baking recipes. Thinner date paste is good for smoothies and as a saucy drizzle on savory dishes.
It is not as flavor-neutral as sugar but does give baked goods a subtle caramel or molasses flavor that is very agreeable.
It does not have a strong flavor like some fruit purees, i.e. bananas!
Yes—in a good way (usually). It adds moisture, makes baked goods softer and denser, and is perfect for muffins, quick breads, brownies, and baked oats.
It is best for soft cookies, not crisp ones. It's a good idea to reduce the amount of liquids by about ¼ to be sure the batter is not too thin.
Yes. Generally, reduce the liquid in a recipe by ¼ when substituting date paste for sugar. If you date paste is thin and contains more water, you may need to reduce by ⅓ or even, ½.
Yes. I use it as a 1:1 replacement, but it is not quite as sweet. Some bakers prefer a 5:4 ratio (1 ¼ cups paste swap for 1 cup of sugar).
Using more paste will make your muffins and cookies softer and denser.
Related recipes
No Sugar Added Granola: This easy, cluster-filled granola is sweetened with date paste for a delicious breakfast or snack.
What about using honey or maple syrup instead of sugar? Read Better Baking: Maple Syrup and Honey to find out how to perfect your treats when using these natural sweeteners.
Date Scones: If you love the caramel-like flavor of dates, you'll enjoy this healthy and delicious scone recipe. (Perfect with a cup of tea!)
Date Paste
Ingredients
- 1 cup dates pitted and packed
- ½ cup boiling water
Instructions Start Cooking
- Wash hands thoroughly, lathering with soap and rinsing with running water for 20 seconds.
- In a small bowl, pour hot water over the dates. Use a spatula to press dates into the water. Let soak for 20 minutes.½ cup boiling water 1 cup dates
- Place dates and water in a blender, food processor, or high-sided container suitable for use with a hand-held (immersion) blender. Blend until dates are pulverized and pureed.See note below.
- For later use, transfer the paste to an air-tight container with a capacity of 8 to 12 ounces, or use immediately in a recipe, substituting for sugar in a 1:1 ratio.
Notes
Nutrition
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