Date Swirl Loaf
Growing up, around Christmas and Eid my mum would bring back Ma’amoul from work. Ma’amoul is a date/nut filled shortbread type of biscuit you find around the Levant region. I would usually get the date filled ones, and to this day the taste evokes something super special. It’s a dessert I associate with the festive period, and because of this, I wanted to somehow create a dessert that payed tribute to its flavours, adding my own spin to it. This is a recipe that has taken many trials to get to where it is, but the finished product is exactly what I envisioned.
This is a loaf/bread made with an enriched bread dough and a date, cardamom and orange blossom swirl.
My favourite way of eating this is toasted (under the grill-not in a toaster-I think toasters are too aggressive) slathered with even more salted butter or nut butter- either hazelnut or tahini. With the leftovers of the loaf, you can make incredible french toast, the date swirl caramelises and gets a slight crisp, absolutely delicious.
Tip: I use Sukari dates in this recipe; they are a lot softer and fruitier than Medjool. If you can’t find Sukari, Iranian Mazafati dates work wonderfully. Try going to a Middle Eastern shop to find them. As a last resort, Medjool dates can be used but make sure to get the least dry ones, soak them in boiling water for 15-30 minutes until they go very soft and drain them really well.
Serves: 1 12x26cm loaf
prep/baking/cooling time: 1h 45- 2h
Ingredients
3 1/2 cups (455g) plain flour
1 tsp (4g) sea salt
3/4 cups (162g) milk (dairy or non-dairy)
2 tbsp (27g) granulated sugar
2 tsp (7g) active dry yeast
2/3 cup (130g) cooled melted butter, with extra for brushing on top
2 large eggs
1 cup (205g) Sukari dates or other soft dates
1 tbsp (36g) date molasses
1 tbsp (15g) dark brown sugar
1/4 tsp ground cardamom
1 3/4 tsp orange blossom
Method
1. In a large bowl add flour and salt, mix until well combined
2. Heat the milk until lukewarm- around 33°C. Stir in the sugar and yeast and set aside for 5 minutes for the yeast to bloom.
3. Once the yeast mixture has become frothy and bloomed, add the melted butter to the mix.
4. Pour the wet mix into the flour, mixing, until a dough forms- you can do this with a stand mixer or manually. When a dough has formed, crack the eggs and add them one at a time, mix until fully incorporated.
5. Knead the dough for 5-7 minutes with a stand mix. If kneading manually, knead for 10-15 minutes or until the dough is smooth and bounces back 3/4 of the way when poked. Cover with cling film and let proof for 45 minutes to 1 hour or until doubled in size.
6. Meanwhile, pit and discard all the pits from the dates. Add the dates, date molasses, dark brown sugar, cardamom and orange blossom into a food processor and pulse until a paste forms. Set aside.
7. When the dough has doubled in size, lightly dust a clean surface with flour and tip out the dough from the bowl. Roll the dough out into a long rectangle- you want the width of the dough to be no larger than that of your loaf tin, around 25x40. Gently spread the sticky date paste all over.
8. Starting from the bottom, tightly roll up the dough into a log. Let the dough rest seam side down for a minute to seal it.
9. Butter the mould, and place the log into it seam side down. It shouldn’t be too long if rolled the right way. Cover and let it proof once more until almost doubled size, 45 minutes.
10. Preheat your oven to fan 180°C. When the loaf has finished proofing, brush the top with the extra melted butter and bake for 50-55 minutes, until the bread has gone golden brown. Remove from the oven and let cool completely before cutting into it. .