Dates are gaining popularity as a healthy sugar substitute and a great additive to sweet and savory recipes. Confectionery and bakery businesses can benefit a lot from this healthy ingredient. Here we discuss briefly how these businesses can add value for consumers by using date ingredients in confectionery and baked goods.
Reasons to Use Date Ingredients in Confectionery
Dates are as healthy as other dried fruits and are perfectly safe for confectionery and bakery uses. Dates products (date pitted, diced, paste, syrup and powder) have several attributes that make them advantageous for confectionery and bakery applications. They can replace other ingredients such as sugar, honey or maple syrup. And they can be used as a coloring and flavoring agent and garment. A few other criteria are discussed below.
Date’s Natural Sweeteners Improve Food Taste
The first and most important reason to include dates in confectionery and bakery goods is to enrich foods. Date fruit is a rich source of fructose, which is a natural type of sugar found in fruit. Fructose gives dates a delightful taste with a subtle caramel-lake feel. For this reason, date products make an excellent substitute for a variety of other sweeteners. For example, date sugar can substitute artificial sugar in various food applications . such as cakes, cookies and breads. Similarly, date syrup is a healthy replacement for honey or maple syrup in bars and snacks.
The use of date ingredients in confectionery and baked goods follow other general health concerns. Dates add up to the overall food health. They provide necessary ingredients as well as improve energy levels. This means date-based foods and snacks are an excellent option for people who care about their energy, such as sports persons, yoga practitioners, runners, etc.
Dates Can Last As Long As You Need Them
Dates are heat stable and can last for nearly two years at room temperature. So you can easily buy date products in bulk and keep a constant stock all year round. Heat stability ensures that date products do not go bad or change taste after packaging or during transportation, and storage. It also means date products can be cooked over higher heat than honey.
Dates are also very resistant to fungi and food spoilers due to natural sweeteners. This ensures that they keep their taste and smell for a long period. Ideally, date derivatives should be stored in cool places away from sunlight.
Tacky Texture: A food Strengthener and Binder
Dates are beautifully soft, sweet, and sticky with a pleasant smell. For this reason, they pair favorably with other ingredients such as chocolate, nuts, and seeds.
Dates work perfectly as a food strengthener and binder, especially when used as the base in bars and snacks. They hold the ingredients together and add sweetness to them. The chewy texture of dates can also work well against the crunchy texture of nuts and seeds in date granola bars. In the case of date energy bars, date paste can bind the ingredients together much better than other common options, such as chocolate or honey.
Note : You may find date paste a bit too sticky or stiff to apply to confectines, cookies and cakes or breads. You can always reduce its stiffness by adding date syrup to it right before adding to the dough.
Simple Ingredients With Complex Applications
Dates can be processed into various direct (date paste, sugar, syrup, pieces) and indirect products. Indirect products in the confectionery and bakery sector include all kinds of desserts, cakes, cookies, breads, bars and balls.
The use of date ingredients in confectionery and baked goods is only limited by imagination. Dates are versatile and can be used in many desserts, cakes, cookies and breads, you name it. One good example of date-based desserts is date cake which is a simple cake with a wonderful and unique flavor of dates.
Dates have a sticky texture, which makes them different. The addition of date paste to baked items and snack bars is well known. For example, you can combine date paste with other ingredients to nutrition bars or balls or combine it with nuts and seeds to make healthy date granola bars. Date paste holds the whole mix together like a binder while adding taste to it.
Or you can sandwich a thin layer of date paste between bread crusts to make date cookies, or oat crusts to make old-fashioned date paste squares. Also you can take your bread-making skills to the next level with date and rye bread. Dark rye and sweet dates make a perfect pairing, creating a dark loaf that goes brilliantly with cheese.
What Consumer Gain From Date-based Confectioneries
Consumers demand food items that satisfy their needs. Whether its taste and texture, or dietary values, dates can meet a wide range of demands.
Customer value is rooted in the date’s nutrition facts, texture, versatility and shelf life. Date products pack a mix of nutritional values that come with food items you make with these plant-based ingredients. This allows them to satisfy a variety of dietary requirements. The demand for date-based products is on the rise. This is reflected in the growing market for date-based protein bars. They are very popular among different consumer segments, ranging from children and parents to sports people and travelers. This is a good opportunity for manufacturers to provide value for their customers.
Bigger Profit Margin With Date Ingredients
You can make a great value proposition to your customers using date-based confectionery and baked items. Date products should be affordable for consumers, not cheap. That is achievable when quality dates, and other ingredients, are sourced at reasonable prices. Even with all the work that goes into creating a quality date candy, for example, the final price stays reasonable.
Of course, keeping the price moderate does not mean ignoring or reducing the quality. Instead, producers should persistently find and use acceptable ingredients at sensible prices.
It also doesn’t mean producers should enter a price war. As long as we keep the bar high for quality and low for availability, producers can keep their business, and consumers can enjoy tasty date products at reasonable prices. By including date ingredients in confectionery and baked goods and snacks you are giving more value to your customers than the money you take from them.
What You Can Make with Dates Ingredients
Now that you have date ingredients at hand, what can you do with them? Here is a list of products that confectioneries and bakeries can offer customers. We didn’t separate confectioneries from baked goods as there are some commonalities. Recipes based on date paste are very popular. They may or may not be common in your area. So, it is always wise to keep your customers in mind. And it is worthwhile sometimes to surprise them with something new.
Conclusion
Dates are unique fruits with excellent nutrients, texture, and shelf life. As consumer products, dates can be easily included in sweet and savory foods. As commercial products, they can help confectionery and bakery businesses add value in various ways. There will be more about using date ingredients in confectionery, pastry and snacks. So stay tuned to our website.
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