How to Make Sweetened Date Syrup
Date syrup, also known as molasses or dalma, is a sweet, thick luscious syrup extracted from raw dates. It’s currently most popular in Middle Eastern cuisine. Date syrup dates back to biblical times when it was used as a popular thickener for dough and pastries. In those days, it was also used as a method of preserving food, such as dates, fish, meats, and dairy products. For these reasons, it’s now popular as an ingredient in all kinds of sweets and baked goods.
Date syrup has a light caramel color which develops during the aging process. The end result is a sweetness with a slight vanilla flavor – almost like a bakeshop apricot. There are four main types of date syrup: African, American, Basmela and European. All four have their own unique characteristics and use. Below is an overview of each type and some examples of dishes that use it:
Pancakes are an easy dish to make using date syrup. While plain white pancakes taste great, you can jazz them up by adding the right sweetener. You can use any type of syrup for pancakes – a light caramel for a crisp, fresh taste or the dark brownish-bake taste of molasses or even date syrup for a richer, darker flavor. To make pancakes taste even better, you can add canned or fresh fruit, or simply use a combination of them. Add a little water to help the pancake become plumper; you don’t need much water, just a touch.
Cookies and cakes are another favorite dessert sweetener. They’re usually coated in sugar, and sometimes you want them to feel good so you might consider using date syrup to coat them. Date syrup is a rich, dark brownish-bake flavor that crystallizes when cooled, much like chocolate or caramel. Although you can buy ready-made cake mix or sugar and date syrup from the grocery store, if you’d like your desserts to taste better you can experiment with making them yourself.
One of the things that make our recipes unique is our own preference in ingredients to pair with it. For example, a sweet tooth can’t handle the rich creamy flavor of molasses or date syrup without a bit of a sweetener to smooth it out. If you decide to use these items as a replacement for sugar you can change the recipe to: Use equal parts of both molasses and date syrup. The sweetness of the sugar substitute doesn’t take away the richness of the original, which makes it a delicious, smooth dessert. If you prefer the traditional recipe of mixing molasses and sweetener you can always add a teaspoon of molasses or date syrup to the recipe later.
Many people are under the impression that there’s only one type of sweetener used in all recipes. This is untrue, however, you can use any natural sweetener that you like in place of sugar in your recipes. In fact, many recipes that use sugar and date syrup are really created using natural sweeteners such as Stevia. Using a natural sweetener instead of sugar will improve the flavor and texture of any recipe.
When creating recipes for Date Syrup you’ll want to add the syrup to boiling water along with the sugar and bring to a boil. You then stir this mixture until it reaches the desired consistency, which should be thick and syrupy. It will typically take approximately five minutes before it’s done. While simmering the mixture you can also decide to use a candy thermometer to measure when the syrup is done. By stirring constantly you can ensure that the Date syrup reaches the correct temperature and does not scorch.
Since the syrup will usually be thick, you can use it to sweeten the oatmeal in the mornings. If you’re trying to eat less calories in the day, you can sweeten the oatmeal to reduce its fat content. You could also try cooking with the sweetened syrup in place of or in addition to honey. You could try serving a bowl of Date syrup on an oatmeal morning for a healthier breakfast or dessert.