Stuffed Dates (Written from Italy)

Soft dates coated in dark chocolate and stuffed with nut butter, fresh berries or nuts.  The perfect quick snack for a healthy midday pick-me-up.

This week I took the staple of Middle Eastern snack food, famous for sustaining energy levels, stuffed and coated’em in chocolate.  The thing about maintaining daily energy is that many have overcomplicated it by looking to power bars and endless cups of coffee. Its not good for our bodies and, frankly, expensive. For thousands of years dates have been cultivated as a staple ingredient across the Arab world precisely because of their ability to preserve energy packed bites over long periods of time. For me, it’s all about finding ways to create quick healthy snacks that keep me energized. I find the best way to do this is to re-imagine traditional ingredients. Today, we are drawing from traditional roots to make a quick snack fitted for the modern world.

These dates are coated in a shell of dark chocolate and topped with everything from crushed nuts, soft goji berries or hemp seeds!  It is a painlessly easy snack because all you have to do is melt the chocolate and top it with what you have on hand. Another great way to re-imagine dates is to stuff them with creamy nut butter and slices of fresh fruit. Dates have a natural caramel like flavor, when stuffed with almond butter they become rich, creamy bites.

When preparing for the week ahead, I’m all about making speedy snacks that keeps me satisfied. I make this in bulk, store the extra in the freezer, and take 2-3 to work as an indulgent snack.  It’s a great recipe, simple enough to add to your repertoire – decadent in flavor and filled with lasting energy. 

Serves: Many

Prep Time: 5 minutes | Cook Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients for the Stuffed Dates:

- 15 medjool dates (or as many as you would like)

- 1 bar vegan chocolate (or any kind)

Toppings:

- nut butter

- hemp seeds

- crushed nuts

- cacao nibs

- berries

- goji berries

- honey

Instructions:

For the chocolate coated dates - simply melt the bar of chocolate over low heat in a saucepan, stirring as it melts.  Then dip the dates into the chocolate sauce, top with crushed nuts, hemp seeds, or goji berries and place in the freezer to harden for 15 minutes.  To stuff the dates, simply cut the date in half and remove the pit.  Then add a dollop of almond butter into the hole of the date and top with a piece of fruit – I love it with a slice of raspberry and drizzle of honey.

I hope you enjoy this simple treat as much as I have and I’d love to know other ways in which you stuff or coat your dates.  Feel free to leave a comment on your favorite way!

xx Marie