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Dxbuzz: Dish out the dates

These edible delights are ideal to break your fast with, and can be incorporated into a variety of sweet and savoury dishes. Here are a few of our favourites:

Couscous salad with dates
Water - 2 cups
Salt - 1/2 tsp
Couscous - 1 cup
Extra-virgin olive oil - 1/4 cup
Lemon juice - 4 tbsp
Lemon peel grated - 1 tbsp
Dates syrup - 2 tbsp
Green chili minced - 1 tsp
Chickpeas, soaked and drained - 1 cup
Dates chopped - 2/3 cup
Almonds, slivered and toasted - 1/2 cup
Fresh cilantro minced - 1/2 cup
Green onions minced - 1/4 cup
Grapes - 1/4 cup
Fresh cilantro sprigs - Optional
- Add couscous to 2 cups of boiling f water, with ½ tsp salt in a saucepan.
- Stir for 30 seconds then remove from heat, cover and let it stand for 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork and add to a large bowl to cool.
- For the dressing, blend olive oil, f lemon juice, lemon peel, green chilli and dates syrup. Drizzle over couscous.
- Mix in chickpeas, dates, almonds, minced cilantro, and green onions. Add salt and pepper to taste. Let it stand at room temperature for 30 minutes before serving. Garnish with cilantro sprigs, if required.
Turkey-wrapped dates with honey glaze
Turkey or beef, bacon-style strips - 10
Dates - 10
Goat's cheese - 1 ½ cups
Honey - 2 tbsp
Butter - ½ tbsp
Balsamic glaze - 2 tbsp
Corn-starch - ½ tbsp
- Preheat oven to 400 Fahrenheit.
- Stuff dates with goat's cheese.
- Wrap with turkey or beef and cook for 18 minutes.
- While the dates are cooking, add the honey, butter and balsamic to a small pan over medium-low heat and stir well to combine.
- Once mixed, remove from heat and add in the corn-starch, stirring well to incorporate.
- Drizzle over wrapped dates to serve.
Medjoul chicken
Chili paste dried - 1 tbsp
Garlic - 2 cloves
Ginger cut into pieces - 1 inch
Large onion cut into pieces - 1
Chicken cut into small pieces - 1 medium
Tumeric powder - 1 tsp
Salt - 1 tsp
Vegetable oil - 4 tbsp
Lemongrass bruised - 2 stalks
Medjoul dates pitted and chopped - 10
Large onion cut into rings for stir-fry - 1
- For the paste, blend the chilli paste, garic, ginger and onion in a food processor.
- Rub salt and turmeric onto chicken. Fry the chicken in a pan with heated oil, until brown. Drain the oil, remove the chicken and set aside.
- Add the spice paste and lemongrass and stir-fry till fragrant. Add the chicken back into the pan with the dates, chopped onion and water (if needed) and stir till chicken is cooked.
Add salt and pepper to taste.
Date syrup ice-cream
Condensed milk - 400g
Whipped cream - 3 cups
Nutmeg powder - 1½ tsps
Toasted almond slivers - 1½ cup
Pistachio nuts crushed - 100g
Dried dates chopped - 1 cup
Date syrup - 60ml
- Combine condensed milk, whipped cream and nutmeg powder in a bowl. Whisk until thick and creamy.
- Carefully fold in almonds, pistachio and dates.
- Pour half of the mixture into a foil-lined pan.
- Gently drizzle date syrup over the cream then spoon the rest of the cream mixture over this.
- Cover with cling film and freeze for at least 12 hours until set.
- Cut into slices or scoop out to serve.

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