Dates are soaked in boiling water and baking soda to soften them before being added to the batter. The dates give this bread a moist, rich taste.

Date Nut Bread

Ingredients:

Batter:

1 cup boiling water

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 cups pitted dates, coarsely chopped

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

2/3 cup buttermilk, chilled

¾ cup firmly packed dark brown sugar

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1 large egg

1 cup toasted walnuts or pecans, coarsely chopped

Tip: See Toasting Nuts and Seeds. Use standard measuring cups and spoons or scales for accurate measuring.

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare one 9x5x2¾ inch loaf pan; lightly grease the pan with shortening and dust with flour. Tip: to make baked bread easier to remove from pan, lightly grease the pan, line with parchment paper, and then lightly grease the top of the parchment paper and dust with flour.
   
   Batter:
   
2. In a medium mixing bowl, combine boiling water, baking soda, and dates. Cover and set aside about 30 minutes or until the dates have softened and the water is lukewarm.
   
   
3. In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
   
   
4. In a large bowl, combine buttermilk, brown sugar, melted butter, and egg; whisk together until well blended. Stir in the date and water mixture. Add flour mixture; stir just until blended. Stir in nuts.  
   
   Bake:
   
5. Pour batter in the loaf pan. Bake 60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove pan from oven and let cool about 15 minutes. Grabbing the top edges of the parchment paper, lift bread from loaf pans and place on a wire cooling rack to finish cooling. Remove parchment paper and discard.
   
   Makes 1 loaf
   
   TheBakingPan.com
   
   Recipe Adapted from The America’s Test Kitchen Family Cookbook
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