Tagged with 'dates'

What a wonderful spin on the traditional macaroon! They’re composed entirely of plant-based, nutrient-dense, and whole foods that energize, nourish, and taste delicious.

The natural ingredients in these macaroons provide a boost of antioxidants, essential fatty acids (like omega-3s in the brazil nuts), minerals, vitamins, and more.

Maca is an amazing superfood that has been used for over 2,000 years by the Peruvian people. It’s a sturdy root vegetable, typically dried and then ground into a powder. Nutritionally, maca root is a rich source of vitamin C, B-vitamins, calcium iron, and copper (just to name a few), and even contains protein and plant sterols.  

The combination of maca and brazil nuts in these macaroons tastes almost like peanut butter…with a lovely coconut-ty embrace, of course. 

I think these maca-macaroons will make you feel as good as they taste. 

Maca-Macaroons

Makes about 20 cookies

1 cup raw brazil nuts

1¼ cups unsweetened shredded coconut, plus extra for rolling

1½ Tablespoons maca powder

¾ cup (packed) soft Medjool dates (about 7 or 8), pits removed

1 Tablespoon maple syrup

1 Tablespoon vanilla extract

¼ teaspoon sea salt

Grind all the ingredients together in a food processor until a coarse dough has formed. Check the consistency: pinch the dough and make sure it sticks together, yet still crumbles like a cookie. If the dough is too dry, add water, a teaspoon at a time, until the dough sticks. If the dough is too wet, add spoonfuls of extra coconut until the dough is just right.

Form the dough into balls, about a tablespoon at a time, and roll exterior in extra coconut. Flatten into cookies and serve. Kept covered, these cookies will last several weeks.

Recipe from Julie Morris’s Superfood Kitchen recipe book

Only recently did I discover how awesome dates are! I like eating them fresh, and they also add such a unique flavor and texture to any recipe. I especially love the subtle caramel-like sweetness they offer, and including dates in a recipe makes an excellent all-natural sugar alternative or allows you to reduce the amount of sugar needed.  

There’s more to dates than just their flavor profile. Dates are high in fiber and contain powerful antioxidants called polyphenols, which are found only in plants. They’re also a great source of many minerals such as calcium, magnesium, manganese, zinc, copper, iron, selenium and potassium.

You’re guaranteed to enjoy dates baked into these delicious, gooey cookies. Who wouldn’t when they‘re combined with rum, right?!

Enjoy!

Yield: 26 cookies

Ingredients

15 ounces (425 grams) pitted dates

2 Tbsp dark rum

3/4 cup unsalted butter, melted

1 cup brown sugar

¼ cup granulated sugar

1 large egg + 1 egg yolk

2 tsp vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

½ tsp baking soda

½ tsp salt

½ tsp ground allspice

½ tsp ground cardamon

¼ tsp freshly grated nutmeg

Flakey sea salt to sprinkle

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven on 340F/170C.

2. Finely mince the pitted dates, then mix them evenly with dark rum (the minced dates are really sticky so you may need to use your hands to work this). Let soak for 10 min.

3. Meanwhile in a large bowl, whisk melted unsalted butter with brown sugar and granulated sugar until smooth. Then whisk in the egg, egg yolk and vanilla extract until smooth again.

4 . Sift the all-purpose flour, baking soda, salt, ground allspice, ground cardamon and freshly grated nutmeg directly into the bowl, then mix all the ingredients into a dough with a spatula.

5. Add the run-soaked dates, then fold again until evenly incorporated (again, the dates are sticky so break them up with the spatula).

6. Line the baking-sheet with parchment, then scoop about a heaping tbsp of dough on top with 3" (8 cm) of space in between each. Use your fingers to press each cookie-dough flat to about 1/4" (0.5 cm) thick (you can dab your fingers with a bit of vegetable oil to prevent sticking). Sprinkle with a few flakes of sea salt on each, then bake in the oven for 10~11 min (the cookies should feel quite soft when they're warm).

7. Let cool on the baking-sheet for 5 min, then transfer to a cooling-rack.

Notes: The weight of the dates is measured without pits.

This recipe is courtesy of Mandy at Lady and Pups. Thanks!