The Thing about Dates

…is that, despite the fact that dried dates look like giant deer droppings (you know it's true!) and have the texture of homemade caramel that's been left out for about a week and a half, they make for an excellent cake ingredient. You may be thinking, "Oh, dates in cakes - old news; I use them all the time!" but stewing up dried dates in a boiling water/baking soda mixture was a whole new adventure in baking for me. And one I was rather thrilled about, since it made me feel like a chemist.
I'm sure there are all sorts of good reasons for why dates make such a perfectly moist and surprisingly light cake, but a cursory Google search didn't reveal much. The community over at Wikipedia reports that:

The sugar content of ripe dates is about 80%; the remainder consists of protein, fat and mineral products including copper, sulfur, iron, magnesium and fluoric acid. Dates are high in fiber and an excellent source of potassium.

It would seem, then, that dates are at least a natural alternative to heaps of sugar and have a few added side benefits.

Mom's* Chocolate Chip Date Cake

Rating: 3

Here's why:

Where's the chocolate? While I think dates make an excellent cake ingredient, I wouldn't go so far as to stay that they make an excellent chocolate cake ingredient. This was a pretty good cake. Not great, but pretty good. Note that the recipe calls for a mere 4 tablespoons of cocoa, with that being the only chocolate added to the batter. Granted, the cake topping includes semisweet chocolate chips, but even then they play the role of a chocolate burst in the flavor medley, rather than being the dominant flavor.

What's cool, though, is that the dates add a beautiful velvety brown hue to the batter. So it looks like chocolate, but when you bite in, the impression you come away with is more like "Mmm…moist!" vs. "Ohhhh…chocolate!"


This cake seems to be more about texture than chocolate, which makes me wonder why it was included in a cookbook titled Death by Chocolate. This was more like Death by Wondering Who Came up with the Notion of Dates in Cake. Still, I tip my hat to them because I would definitely be more apt to try a baked good recipe that calls for dates simply because it's clear they add a great deal in the moisture and texture department.


I would make this cake again, but only as something like a contribution to a potluck picnic rather than a wham-bang finish to a special dinner.

*Not Holly's mom, and not even the mom of the author of this cookbook. Apparently "mom" is Mrs. Peavey, the mother of the author's assistant chef.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 c. sugar


• 2 cups chopped dried dates (1 8-oz. pkg)


• 1 3/4 t. baking soda


• 1 stick (1/4 pound) plus 1 T. unsalted butter


• 1 3/4 c. plus 1 T all-purpose flour


• 4 T. unsweetened cocoa


• 1/2 t. salt


• 1 1/2 c. sugar


• 2 eggs


• 1 t. vanilla


• 3 c. semisweet chocolate chips


• 1 c. walnut pieces

Instructions
Preheat the oven to 325.

Heat the water in a 2-quart saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil. Place the chopped dates and 1 t. baking soda in a stainless steel bowl. Pour the boiling water over the dates, and allow to stand until needed.

Coat a 9x13 pan with 1 T. butter. Flour the pan with 1 T. flour and shake out the excess. Set aside until needed.

Combine 1 3/4 c. flour, the cocoa, remaining baking soda, and the salt in a sifter. Sift onto waxed paper and set aside.

Combine 1 c. sugar and the remaining butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Beat on medium for 2 minutes, then scrape down the sides of the bowl. Beat on high for 1 minute, then add the eggs, one at a time, beating on high for 15 seconds after the addition of each egg, and then scraping down the sides after each addition. After the eggs have been incorporated, beat on high for 2 minutes. Scrape down the bowl.

Add the vanilla extract and beat on medium for 15 seconds. Scrape down the bowl. Add the sifted flour mixture and heat on low for 20 seconds. Add the cooled date mixture and continue to beat on low for 20 seconds, then on medium for 10 seconds. Remove the bowl from the mixer and use a rubber spatula to thoroughly combine.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread evenly, including to the corners. Sprinkle the remaining 1/2 c. sugar over the top of the batter.

Bake in the center of the preheated oven for 20 minutes. Remove the cake from the oven and sprinkle the chocolate chips, then the walnut pieces, over the top of the batter.
Return the cake to the oven and bake for an additional 20 to 25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Remove the cake from the oven and allow to cool to room temperature, about 30 to 40 minutes. Refrigerate the cake for at least 15 to 20 minutes. Leaving the cake in the pan, use a serrated slicer to cut it.