Shake Up Your Dates!
We’ve been hearing a lot lately about a special California treat called a date shake. It caught our interest immediately! What could be more delicious than a cool, creamy beverage flavored with our plump and delicious dates?
We gave a few recipes a whirl, and these shakes sure are something! Here’s the recipe we love for this chilly treat.
To start, chop up 1/3 of a cup of pitted dates. Put the dates in a small bowl and sprinkle 2 tbsp. of warm water over them. Let them soften up for about five minutes, then drain the water from the bowl and dump the dates in a blender pitcher.
Add one peeled, frozen banana to the pitcher, along with 2 cups of almond milk or cow’s milk, 1/2 cup of vanilla ice cream of frozen yogurt, and a handful of ice cubes. Blend up the mixture until you have a smooth, frosty concoction, and serve it topped with whipped cream and ground nutmeg. Delicious!
Have you ever had a date shake? What are some of your favorite variations? We’d love to hear more about our new favorite treat!
One Response to “Shake Up Your Dates!”
I am (was!) a second generation SoCal native, and I’ve had tons of date shakes, from the more healthy style, to the more decadent that are traditional in the Coachella valley where they originate. The most famous are Shields. They actually use (and sell) dried, finely chopped dates. You mix those with water, freeze, add an unmentionable amount of rich vanilla ice cream, and just enough milk to blend it together. Takes forever to drink though it’s so thick, and in the hot Inland Empire you’ll burn through the liquids and calories in no time.
They are an occasional treat, but still my favorite. 🙂
Your dates are too tasty to pulverize in such a manner, so I simply throw a fat handful into my ice cream and milk. For a little extra decadence you can soak the dates to make them easier to blend, but I soak them in my alcohol of choice. Sherry usually, marsala is nice, and Baileys is very good too. A little brandy and you have a date enriched take on the old-timey Brandy Alexander. I soak them the same way in alcohol any time I’m going to cook them. Yours don’t necessarily need the extra moisture, but it does make them even more tasty!
It’s hard to make a date shake wrong, they’re heavenly! Go experiment folks, NutsOnline has more. 🙂