Refined sugar is pretty much everywhere. It's not just packaged cakes, muffins and cookies that contain refined sugar, it's also present in our store-bought sauces, dips, sandwich spreads, packaged fruit juices and soft drinks and some brands even add it to breads. Refined sugar is linked with numerous dangerous health conditions, from weight gain to increased risk of heart diseases, high blood sugar or diabetes, etc. Excessive consumption of sugar may also lead to faster skin ageing as well as frequent acne and breakouts. This is why health experts have been warning against consumption of too much sugar and have been urging us to look for healthier alternatives like natural sweeteners. Dates have been hailed as one of the best natural sweeteners out there.
What Makes Dates A Healthy Sweetener: Nutritional Values And Facts
Also Read: Can You Eat Dates (Khajur) In Summers? We Find Out!
Dates are powerhouses of energy and fibre and a paste or syrup made from dates may be used instead of refined sugar for sweetening a wide range of desserts like cakes, cupcakes, granola bars, puddings, halwas, ladoos, burfis etc.
Also Read: 6 Interesting Ways to Include Dates (Khajur) in Your Diet
How To Make Date Paste To Replace Sugar
There's a very easy way of turning dates into a nutritional sweetener- date paste. All you need is some ripe dates and some water for soaking, as well as an electric blender. Follow this method to make date paste:
1. Soak the pitted dates in lukewarm or warm water for a few hours.
2. Remove the soaked dates and save the water.
3. Puree the dates in a blender and add the soaking water, until they attain a paste-like consistency.
4. You may add some salt or cinnamon to lightly flavour this paste. This date paste can be used in the same quantities as honey or maple syrup in your dessert recipes.
Also Read: 5 Best Dates Recipes | Easy Ways To Add Khajur To Your Diet
You can also make syrup with dates by boiling seedless dates in water and separating the pulp from the sweetened water. This sweetened water is cooked for some more time, until the water evaporates and the reduction thickens and attains a syrup-like consistency. The date paste is however, a better option, as it retains the fibre of the date pulp.
(This content including advice provides generic information only. It is in no way a substitute for qualified medical opinion. Always consult a specialist or your own doctor for more information. NDTV does not claim responsibility for this information.)