Everyone is familiar with surprisingly tasty and incredibly sweet fruits of a date palm . But not everyone knows what dates are called desert bread because of their high calorie content and the ability to quickly grant satiety. It is said that the Prophet Muhammad himself appreciated their taste. Even in the Qur'an, this fruit is mentioned more than twenty-five times. Nutritionists claim that date syrup is an excellent substitute for sugar. Feeding exclusively on date palm fruits and water, you can live for more than three years.
Unfortunately, the inhabitants of our country cannot fully experience the true taste of these fruits. You can’t find them fresh in Russian stores, you have to be content with only dried fruits. But, experts say, this is even good, because it is in the dried dates that the concentration of useful nutrients increases.
What are useful dates for the human body
The fruit contains an incredibly healthy combination of vitamins (B, C, A) and microelements (niacin, pantothenic acid). It is these substances in symbiosis that make it possible to maintain hair, nails, eyes and liver in a working, that is, healthy state.
In addition, dates are an excellent help for the prevention of atherosclerosis, cardiovascular failure, heart attacks and strokes. Uninterrupted operation of the CCC is ensured by the content of magnesium and calcium in the fruits. And as you know, it is these substances that help get rid of excess fluid and allow the heart to drive blood faster.
Date syrup and fruits are recommended for athletes-bodybuilders. They help restore tired muscles after heavy physical. loads. Pectin and dietary fiber, which are part of dates, help prevent the development of peptic ulcer, improve secretion and ensure the proper functioning of the gastrointestinal tract.
What are the useful dates for the human body, in addition to the positive effects on the heart and muscles? It is impossible not to note such a property of date palm fruits as help in cleansing the teeth. It is proved that the constant use of dates helps to get rid of numerous problems with teeth, including providing protection against tooth decay.
And the most, perhaps, the biggest plus of these fruits is that they are simply amazingly tasty. In eastern countries, they are put in desserts, ice cream, pastries. They can replace harmful cakes, pastries and sweets.
Who should not eat dates
These wonderful fruits, unfortunately, have a number of contraindications:
- Firstly, they are not recommended for people who suffer from diabetes.
- Secondly, it is undesirable to eat dates for a person who is overweight and has a large degree of obesity.
Calorie content
If these fruits can be replaced by sweets and cakes beloved by many, then how many kilocalories are in them? One hundred grams of dried fruit contains about 276-279 kcal. If you ate only one date, then you got about 24 kcal.
As for date syrup, its calorie content is slightly lower. Since water is used in the preparation, therefore, the concentration of sugars in the product decreases. In a hundred ml of syrup there will be about 261-267 kcal.
Cooking use
We have already noted that dates are an excellent alternative for those who refuse or do not completely use granulated sugar. You can eat them instead of sweets or cakes, or you can bake pies and cakes with the addition of these fruits. In addition, they are used to prepare a variety of cocktails, spirits and carbonated drinks. Date honey is very popular in the East.
Among the restaurant dishes that are in demand among customers and incorporating dates as their main ingredient, we can name:
- salad with carrots and dates;
- pilaf with raisins and dates;
- stuffed with cheese dates.
There is no limit to the imagination of culinary specialists.
Recently, another product obtained from the date palm fruit has been in great demand. It's about syrup. It can not only be added to various desserts or ice creams, but also simply put in tea instead of sugar.
How to make date syrup at home
You must admit that products purchased in the store do not always meet all our aspirations and hopes. There are such incidents and with sweets. Sometimes bought jam or preserves, ready-made compote or date syrup do not meet all the requirements.
If you encounter such a problem, then do not worry, the problem is solved. It is very simple to make a popular date syrup at home. To do this, you need to take the following products:
- Dates as the main ingredient - in the amount of 850-900 grams. It is better to choose fruits from which seeds have already been removed.
- Water - 1.5 liters.
On this list ends. As you can see, there will be no problems finding products.
Process
The fruits are washed under running water and dried on a towel. Pour one liter of water into the pan, put on the stove. As soon as the water begins to boil, lay the dates. Put the fire at the minimum mark. Syrup is brewed for about two hours. If in the process you notice that the water has almost boiled away, then we add it. There should not be much liquid, only a little should cover the fruits. Since dates are a sweet product, sugar can be omitted during the preparation of syrup.
After two - two and a half hours, you can remove the pan from the fire. Pour dates into cheesecloth, squeeze slightly and again send to the pan. It is proved that well-cooked fruits give juices excellently for a long time after being removed from the plate. Therefore, the process of squeezing the fruit is recommended to be repeated several times.
You can get thick syrup only during prolonged digestion, so we finally remove the fruits from the liquid and again send the container to the fire. Now you can make medium gas and boil the syrup for about twenty minutes. Remove from heat. Let cool. Pour into banks.
Do not worry that the resulting date syrup will be slightly liquid. When it cools down, it immediately acquires the correct stretching viscous consistency. The result will also depend on the type of fruit. Say, the syrup from the dates of "Tiens" is more dense, but from the usual fruits that are sold in all supermarkets, we can’t immediately achieve such a density.
Interesting Facts
- In the East, dates are eaten instead of bread.
- The fruits of the date palm are superior in nutritional properties to the most useful red caviar.
- From the core of the fruit, flour is obtained, which is used to make desserts.