SPICED ISRAELI HONEY DATE CAKE

The Trees we honor for Tu B’Shevat bestow a bounty of incredible flavors of the Land of Israel. Grapes, Figs, Dates, Oranges, Pomegranate seeds, Olives, Honey, Almonds, Walnuts, Pecans, Bulgar, Quinoa, Apples…the list goes on! We decided to share a long time family favorite recipe to honor Tu B’Shevat this year, Spiced Honey Date Cake with Date Honey Sauce. May your year be sweet!

Spiced Israeli Honey Date Cake With Date Honey Sauce

Pastry Ingredients

● 2 cups Israeli dates — pitted and chopped

● 1 1/4 cups water

● 1 teaspoon baking soda

● 1/4 cup margarine, cut into pieces

● 2 large eggs

● 2 teaspoon vanilla extract

● 1 1/4 cup self-rising flour

● 1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar

● 1/2 cup honey

● 1 tsp. cardamom

● 1 tsp. cinnamon

● 1 tsp. nutmeg

● 1 tsp. ground ginger

Date Honey

4 cups Farm Fresh Nuts Pitted Dates

Enough water to cover

Instructions

We recommend filling your blender about 3/4 full of dates and then adding enough water just to cover those dates. Blend until you get a paste and then taste it. If it’s too thick, you can always add more water, or more dates if too thin for your taste.

Once you have the dates and water blended, gently heat until the sugar in the dates breaks down. Cool and use. If you like a more syrup-like consistency filter through cheesecloth.

Preparation

Grease 8-inch spring form baking pan (or pan of choice).

Preheat oven to 350-degrees F.

Place chopped dates and water in small saucepan.

Stir and bring to a boil over high heat.

Remove from heat and stir in baking soda and butter. The baking soda will get a bit foamy and butter will melt.

Set aside for about 25 minutes to cool.

In a medium bowl, mix flour and brown sugar.

Add eggs, vanilla and spices to cooled date mixture and blend until smooth.

Combine wet and dry ingredients, folding together until just combined.

Pour into pan and bake for about 40-45 minutes. For sauce, put all ingredients in a small saucepot and stir well.

Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until sauce comes to a simmer.

Lower heat to low and continue to cook, stirring as needed, for 5 minutes.

Remove from heat and set aside.

Using a skewer, randomly pierce cake in multiple places.

Pour 1/2 cup of the sauce over cake and allow to sit for 5 minutes.

Remove cake from pan and put on desired serving tray.

Drizzle with remaining sauce, or add to each slice as you serve it for the gorgeous dripping effect that makes you want to lick your fingers.

Download Recipe Here