Dates – a super fruit

Dates are generally associated with desert regions and the Arab world. And this comes as no surprise, as the fruits of the date palm have played an important role in these countries for thousands of years. They are valuable trade goods, a traditional part of Islamic culture and have always been a symbol of life, fertility and prosperity.

As one of the oldest cultivated plants in the world, the date palm has spread from its origins in the Persian Gulf to across the Arabian Peninsula and North Africa. These days Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Iran, as well as California in the USA, are among the main producers of the global date harvest, with an annual volume of over nine million tons. These regions are especially well-suited to the climatic requirements of the palms which produce the so-called “bread of the desert”. However, despite it being a plant from desert regions, date palms require an enormous amount of water to grow. As a result, they tend to be grown near water-rich oases.

Thanks to their high sugar content, pure dates are a popular energy-rich snack. Their sweet flavour is also ideal for use in sweet dishes, such as in pastries, smoothies, ice cream, mueslis or cereal bars. Dried dates can be used for this purpose without any additional preparation. Products like date syrup and date sugar are now available on the market and are making dates even more accessible. Date sugar can be used in a similar way to caster sugar. It is created by simply grinding the fruit into fine granules. We use this type of date sugar in our new VIVANI “Dark Date Sugar” chocolate bar with 60% cocoa content.

Dates are also used in hearty cuisine. Examples include the popular starter “bacon-wrapped dates”, combined with (cream) cheese or in spicy vegetable dishes and hearty stews – dates are far more versatile than people often think.