Readers’ recipe swap: Dates

Plump and glossy, rich, sticky and sweet ... I love dates just as they are, with nothing more than a coffee on the side. We’re talking dried dates, here, not fresh – that’s a whole other source of joy. And as you’ve proved this week, their toffee-like flavour and luscious texture means they have myriad uses in the kitchen, adding a natural sweetness to meat dishes, and moisture to many a bake. Stuffed or wrapped with something savoury, they also make the simplest of delicious starters. All hail the date.

The winning recipe: Cheesy date scones

These craggy beauties may lack the elegance required for a genteel afternoon tea, admits Margaret Spiceley, but they more than make up for it with their satisfying combination of sweet and salty.

Makes 12-16 scones
500g plain flour
1 tbsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
200g dates, roughly chopped
100g butter, cubed
80g strong cheddar, grated
350ml milk (you may not need it all)
Egg wash (optional)

1 Preheat the oven to 220C/425F/gas mark 7. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt twice. Add the dates, mix briefly to ensure all the pieces are separated and coated in flour, then rub in the butter until you have a breadcrumb consistency.

2 Stir through the cheese, then pour in just enough milk to make the mixture damp enough to handle as a dough.

3 Handling it lightly, pat the mixture out to about 2cm thick, brush with a little milk and cut into 12-16 shapes.

4 Brush with egg wash, if using, and bake for 17-18 minutes.

Chicken with date molasses

This marinade, says Rachel Kelly, works with any meat or fish, but is particularly good with chicken. It’s wonderful served with rice, couscous or even mashed potatoes.

Serves 3-4
4 tbsp date molasses/syrup
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp shaoxing wine or mirin
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
Juice and zest of 1 lemon
Salt and black pepper, to taste
8 chicken thighs, skin on

1 Combine the date molasses, oil, soy sauce, wine, garlic, lemon juice and zest and seasoning. Stir well. Pour over the chicken. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or overnight.

2 Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Tip the chicken and marinade into a large roasting tin. Bake for 45‑50 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through and the skin is crisp.

Date and fig truffle cake

This rich flourless “cake” from Anna Thomson is ridiculously easy to make – choose the flavourings you love: black pepper and cardamom seeds, star anise, fennel seeds, orange or lemon zest all work well.

Serves 6-8
200g dark chocolate (70% cocoa solids)
100g butter
4 eggs
A pinch of salt
100g dates, chopped
100g dried figs, chopped
Your choice of flavourings
Cocoa powder, to dust

1 Melt the chocolate and butter slowly over barely simmering water in a bain marie. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4.

2 Add the eggs, salt, dates and figs, then blend until smooth. Add your chosen flavourings and blitz again.

3 Pour into a prepared round tin or silicone case. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until set. Leave to cool in the tin.

4 Dust with cocoa powder. To serve, cut into thin slices – it’s very rich!

Dates with bacon

This is Judy Rolston’s attempt to recreate a terrifically simple dish she tried in Medina-Sidonia, a hilltop village in Andalucía. The key bit is the sauce.

Serves 2
6 rashers streaky bacon
12 dates, pitted

For the sauce
2 tbsp black treacle
1 ½ tbsp soy sauce
½ tsp balsamic vinegar
½ tsp five-spice powder

1 Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/gas mark 6. Slice the rashers of bacon in half lengthwise and stretch out with the back of a knife. Wrap each date with bacon and bake for 15 minutes or so.

2 Mix together the sauce ingredients. Put the baked bacon dates on a serving plate and drizzle with the sauce.

Dates stuffed with goat’s cheese

Becky Fleming https://witness.theguardian.com/user/guardianUser13838091 had this simple little dish in a little Portuguese restaurant recently and was so enamoured with it she kept going back for more.

Serves 2 as a starter
10 dates, stoned
Soft goat’s cheese
Rocket, to serve
Olive oil, to taste
Lemon juice, to taste

1 Stuff the dates with goats cheese, then grill until they start to caramelise.

2 Serve them on a bed of rocket and lightly drizzle with the olive oil and lemon juice to taste.

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by noon on Wednesday 2 Nov. Conditions apply: gu.com/32dq3. Selected recipes will appear in Cook and online on 12 November.