What’s So Great About Dates?

Discovery Health dubs them “nuggets of nutrition that satisfy a sweet tooth” which frankly makes them sound good for you and adorable. They also call dates a “natural weight loss food” citing their inherent sweetness which helps with cravings for nuggets of non-nutrition as well as their impressive fibre content for staving off hunger. Also, you can hide them from tiny prying eyes that might (rightly) think they look “icky and weird” in their natural state. Subterfuge… it’s what’s for dinner.

So here’s the nutritional breakdown for 10 dates, courtesy of Discovery Health:

Serving Size: 10 dates

Calories: 234
Fat: < 1 g
Saturated Fat: NA
Cholesterol: 0 mg
Carbohydrate: 61 g
Protein: 2 g
Dietary Fiber: 6 g
Sodium: 2 mg
Niacin: 1 mg
Pantothenic Acid: < 1 mg
Vitamin B6: Calcium: 32 mg
Magnesium: 36 mg
Potassium: 541 mg
Vitamin K: 2.2 mcg

That’s almost a quarter of our daily fibre requirements and almost a quarter of the daily magnesium requirements for toddlers. And the bonus? Dates are not an overpowering flavour so if you can get past that “what is that weird looking thing” stage, you’re golden. One genius use? Blend dates into any smoothie to add nutrition and thickness. And of course there’s my current favourite delivery system… date squares! You can find a bazillion recipes online for classic date squares with the crumbly topping (or just ask anyone who was a Mom in the 70’s I’m thinking). And check out SPC’s Berry Bars (here)which can easily be adapted as date squares. Just soften the dried dates with a little water into a paste over a medium heat on the stove and swap it for the berry filling or combine the two…. And then bring some to my house, mmmmkay?