The other night at the Daiya Cheezecake launch party, Marla Rose from Vegan Street went on a rant about raw vegan desserts that made me pee my pants laughing. It’s not that they can’t taste really good – they do, for the most part. It’s just that they tend to be the same couple ingredients over and over again presented in different shapes:
One thing we can all agree on: dates are weird looking.
- dates
- coconut oil
- nuts of some sort – probably cashews or walnuts
- shredded coconut
- cacao
- maybe an avocado
Blend them together – pudding! Smoosh them into a muffin pan – cupcakes! Make them into little patties and dry them – cookies! We laugh because we love it, though. I’d eat any of those things. Well, not the pudding, I sincerely hate pudding.
But here’s the thing about dates – they really do have a naturally caramelly flavor and sticky texture – so can you really blame vegans for adding dates to anything they can get them into? Some of the best dates I’ve had come from The Date Lady, and along with her particularly sweet and chewy dates, she also makes date syrup, date balsamic (which is amazing) and date caramel.
Date syrup is an extremely versitile ingredient – you can add it to your coffee, drizzle it on ice cream, and add it to lots of recipes – including this one for cookie dough bites from The Date Lady. You might remember a few years ago when Teno reviewed raw, vegan cookie dough bites for this now-defunct vlog Food Puncher. That recipe called for agave, so I actually prefer this one.
If you’re not sold on date syrup as a pantry staple yet, you can actually find 101 uses for the sticky stuff on this site.
Vegan Cookie Dough Bites
By Published: May 6, 2015
- Yield: 24, give or take
This is a really easy recipe that actual kids will actually love. It's also the perfect treat for pregnant ladies in your life.
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup nut butter of choice
- 1/3 cup coconut flour
- 1/3 cup date syrup
- 1/4 cup almond flour
- pinch sea salt
- 1/3 cup vegan chocolate chips
Instructions
- Mix flours and salt together.
- Add nut butter and date syrup to mixture and stir until nice and smooth.
- Add chocolate chips and roll into balls!
- Stick balls in freezer (heh) for 30 minutes to set. Keep in fridge or cool temperatures for best results.
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I’ve only used dates in smoothies and just eating them as is. I would love to try the syrup in my coffee or instead of agave syrup in a recipe!
Most often, I use them in energy bites. I should use them more – every time I buy some, I remember how much I like them.
I use dates in oatmeal & raw desserts mainly, but when I’ve really got a sweet tooth I’ll cut one in half, fill it with raw almond butter and top with shredded coconut.
I mostly use them in raw desserts. I bought 4″ springform pans from Amazon so that I can make small desserts.
Now adding date syrup to my list of things to look for when shopping in “the big city”. 🙂
Oh, didn’t see the question. I eat them straight out of the package! Oh, and in snacky bites, desserts and such, too.
i like to make pecan pie balls with dates, pecans, salt, and vanilla!
I have never used date syrup! I don’t think I’ve ever even seen it to buy! I’ve definitely been missing out.
I swap out loads of sugar in brownies with pureed dates and it is so decadent! I also have been doing the raw chocolate pudding (I actually love pudding too much and HAD to make it healthier somehow). Pureed avocado, dates, banana, little blob of coconut oil, splash of maple syrup, and cocoa. And a spoon. Dates are a staple, i would love to try the date syrup
I’ve only made energy bites with dates myself; however, a vegan cafe nearby makes an amazing vanilla date shake! I also had an awesome nut butter made with dates that I’d love to recreate at home!
I use dates to make homemade Larabars!
I pop ’em in my mouth like Nature’s candy (the dates).
i’ve made homemade larabars and they are yummy!
I use dates in just about everything! on their own, smoothies, puddings, sweetening desserts, making caramel sauce, and I just recently discovered stuffing them with roasted hazelnuts and chocolate chips (!!!!!). I love dates! I would date a date.
I love eating them all on their own! I love how sweet they are:)
I mostly eat dates as-is. I love their caramel flavor. I also make a delicious date cake.
I prefer to eat dates stuffed with nut butter for a snack, but I have also used them to make a nice vegan caramel syrup.
I like using them in my oatmeal, desserts, or stuffing them with peanut butter as a quick snack!
I use them to make energy bars for pre-work out snacks.
We like to stuff dates with almonds, walnuts and cashews. Thanks for the chance! 🙂
i enjoy eating dates.
I like to make date shakes.
Are there more flours that can be eaten uncooked/unbaked? Just curious!
I don’t usually use dates at home but I should!
I’ve used dates in smoothies and when making a sticking date pudding (freaking delicious!!!). My favorite way to eat them, though, is straight up plain! Yummmmm
In energy bars/balls to keep ingredients together and to sweeten the bar/ball.
I made them but used cookie cutters! Lovely flavors! x