There is increasing evidence that Excess sugar has very negative consequences for health. It increases the risk of obesity, diabetes, liver and kidney problems, and heart disease, the leading cause of death worldwide, among others.

Sugar is found naturally in all foods that contain carbohydratessuch as fruits, vegetables, grains and dairy products. These products also contain essential nutrients such as fiber, minerals, vitamins, antioxidants, proteins or calcium, so they should be part of a healthy diet. Besides, our body digests these foods slowlyso the sugar they contain provides a constant supply of energy to our cells.

The problem with sugar is when it is added to products to increase their flavor and is consumed in excess, which is known as free sugar. In fact, the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends limiting added sugar to less than 5% of the calories we consume daily.

The key, then, is in reduce the sugar we add to recipesespecially free sugar. One way to do this is to use sugar-free sweetener alternatives or other healthier forms of sugar, especially fruits naturally rich in sugar. One of the most grateful is the date, which can be a good alternative to refined sugar for the preparation of desserts, sauces or smoothies.

Advantages of dates as a sweetener

The dateIn addition to being a naturally sweet and caloric food, it is rich in fiber (approximately 7 g per 100 g), vitamins (like A and group B), minerals (calcium, iron, magnesium, potassium) and antioxidants.

Despite their sweetness, dates They have a lower glycemic impact than refined sugar thanks to its fiber content, which helps slow digestion and moderates its effect on sugar levels. In fact, many varieties of dates are classified as low glycemic foods.

Furthermore, by weight, dates provide fewer calories than sugar: While 100 g of dates have 277 calories, 100 grams of white sugar has 387 calories.

The date is, therefore, much more nutritionally dense than table sugarwhich has no significant nutritional value beyond calories.

In any case, and as we said at the beginning, the ideal is to reduce the added sugar content in all recipes, whether it comes from dates or table sugar.

Date paste to make desserts

To replace sugar in your baking recipes, you can make your own date paste at home. To do this, you first have to soak the dates in warm water to soften them and then peel them and mash them with a little water.

Once you have the date paste, you can use it to replace sugar in many sweets, especially those that are baked: cookies, cakes, brownies, muffins…

Although it depends on each person’s taste, generally 2/3 cup of date paste replaces one cup of white sugar.

Date syrup to make sauces

Dates are also an excellent option for replace sugar in various savory sauces like barbecue sauce, homemade ketchup, teriyaki sauce… or to make delicious sweet sauces for desserts or to add as a caramel-like topping.

As the date paste has a too thick texture, in this case we will use a date syrup to replace sugar. Making it is very simple, you only need 1 cup of dates and 2 cups of water. Follow these steps:

• Peel, pit and cut the dates into pieces.
• Place them in a pot with the water and cook over low heat for 30 minutes.
• Turn off the heat and let it rest a few minutes until it is at room temperature.
• Crush it with the blender and add water if necessary so that it has a syrupy texture.

Once you have the date syrup, you can use it to replace sugar in your sauces at a 1:1 ratio, although The ideal is to add the syrup little by little to see if the sweetness is enough. You will always have time to add a little more, if it is really necessary.

How to use dates to make smoothies

Another good option happens use dates as a sweetener It’s in smoothies. In addition to replacing sugar with its natural sweetness, will provide nutrients (especially fiber, potassium and antioxidants) and will give them a touch of delicious flavor, similar to candy.

The ideal is to choose Medjool datesthe largest and with a softer texture. Before using them, Soak them for a few minutes in warm water to soften them and remove the bone. Once you have them prepared like this, you can now add them to your blender with the other ingredients you prefer.

We propose, for example, a very simple and delicious banana and date smoothie.

Also you can add spices to your smoothies (such as cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, vanilla…) to give it a more special touch of flavor.

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