Title: Dates in Syrup [Middle East]
Categories: Dessert
Yield: 1 Batch

2	lb	Fresh dates*
3	c	Sugar (or weight of pitted - dates)
1/2		Lemon; juice of
3		To 4 cloves
OPTIONAL FILLING
3	oz	Chopped candied orange peel - (approximately)
3/4	c	Halved blanched almonds

*Roden writes: "This preserve must be made with fresh dates. The red or yellow varieties which occasionally appear in Greek shops will do. Treated in the following manner, they are totally different from the dried dates with which people in the West are so familiar."

Peel the dates carefully. Boil them in enough water to cover for about 1 hour, or until they are very soft. Drain them, reserving the water, and remove the pits. Measure the date liquor [sic] and make up to 3 3/4 c. with cold water. Add sugar and lemon juice; bring to a boil. Simmer for a few minutes, then drop in the dates and cook for a further [sic] 20 minutes. Lift the dates out carefully with a flat perforated spoon and put them in a clean glass jar, burying the cloves among them. Thicken the syrup by allowing it to boil until it coats the back of a spoon or sets when tested on a cold plate. Pour over the dates and close as usual. These dates are also delicious stuffed with either orange peel or almonds. They should be filled as they are pitted, before cooking in the syrup.

From "A Book of Middle Eastern Food" by Claudia Roden. New York:

From: Dorothy Flatman Date: 09-12-98 (12:24) The Once And Future Legend (1) Cooking

previous

next