Tuesday, March 12, 2013

Dates and Daylight Saving Time

Sent the new computer back and still haven't found a new one, so have been trying to do it all with my phone. Fun writing a post, but impossible to leave reasonable comments. Autocorrect can change the nicest comment into the weirdest inappropriate stuff. But my point, and I do have one, is that I haven't been sulking quietly about Day Light Saving's Time - which anyone who knows me knows is one of my major universal complaints - and the Spring Back Time Change is the very worst part of it.
Today I discovered that the Palm Trees right outside my window in Southern California are currently producing dates. Does anyone even eat dates anymore? I wonder if these are edible. The crows seem to think so, but they are camera-shy. Or maybe the dogs that follow me everywhere are their problem?



10 comments:

  1. It always takes me awhile to adjust to the time change. Don't know if your dates are the edible kind. I do know that dates wrapped in bacon, secured with a toothpick and roasted on a rack over a cookie sheet make a great appetizer. Then again, wrap most anything in bacon...

    Darla

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  2. Wow - you are technical, I cannot imagine blogging or even commenting with just my phone, but then I'm a complete luddite. I LOVE dates, any way I can get them,my favourite dessert is sticky date toffee pudding which my mother makes.

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  3. Have missed you and hope you get your computer soon. I know what you mean about making comments via phone: I can never seem to make it work. Am impressed you can POST from your phone! I love dates! I have a recipe for the BEST date nut bread and make it often. Hope yours are edible.

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  4. Hi Darla - I bet the combination of bacon and dates is a winner.

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  5. Hi Jody - I love the term "Luddite"! It says it all. Luckily my children aren't and they're the ones who guide me when I want more from my electronics. I just handed my new iPod, (which was a present from my son, Nick) to my son, Zach, and voila - it came back full of my favorite music, games, and videos. And I can still call them (daughter Amanda, included) when I forget how to access anything. Yeah!
    I love Sticky Pudding! It was once an Ice Cream flavor by Hagen Daas. I would love a good recipe for Date Toffee Pudding - it would even be worth converting from grams and liters to make it. (Here is where I would put in a smiley face, but too often when I try that, people ask me if that is what I meant to do - so I must be doing it wrong.) (Or my sense of humour - just about everything is funny - might not be mainstream.)

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  6. Hi Sanda - And don't get me started on trying to read, write, or respond to emails just using the phone. I have over 300 emails that I haven't even read yet. Quick Breads (or Tea breads, as some call them) are wonderful with Afternoon Tea. You should post that Date Nut Bread recipe. (I have very good luck with your recipes.)

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  7. Another Luddite here - still working on graduating to an Iphone. And I love dates, any way they come, but particularly date cake or bread.

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  8. I too can't leave a decent comment from the phone. Auto correct is a strange thing turning a real word into something awkward. I never ate dates- I hate them- but I like the fact that edibles are growing on public streets.

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  9. Hi Patricia - Get your iPhone and take it to Cananda with you and I bet you'll get lots of help from the younger generation. That's how I get my electronics education.
    I just got an email from Sanda with a link to here Date Nut Bread Recipe. Sounds great! http://www.capitalnewyork.com/article/culture/2012/07/6222195/lost-foods-new-york-city-date-nut-bread-sandwiches-chock-full-o-nuts#.UUCP-4PM3y8.mailto

    DATE-NUT BREAD AND CREAM CHEESE SANDWICHES

    For the bread (makes 1 loaf):

    1 cup pitted chopped dried dates
    3/4 cup boiling water
    1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
    1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
    1/2 teaspoon salt
    1 teaspoon cinnamon
    1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
    1 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped
    3 tablespoons butter, softened
    3/4 cup sugar
    2 eggs
    1 teaspoon vanilla
    8-oz package cream cheese, slightly softened

    1. Preheat oven to 350°F and lightly grease a 9x5-inch metal loaf pan, set aside.
    2. Add the dates to medium-sized, heat-safe bowl. Pour boiling water over top, stir and let stand 15 minutes.
    3. Meanwhile, stir together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a medium bowl. Add the nuts and set aside.
    4. In a separate large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until combined (mixture might look crumbly). Add eggs and vanilla and mix until smooth and combined.
    5. Alternate between adding the flour mixture and the date mixture (including remaining water), 1/2 of each at a time, mixing until combined.
    6. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake 45-55 minutes, until bread is almost completely baked, but a few crumbs still stick to a toothpick inserted into the loaf. The bread will continue cooking after it is removed from the oven, so be careful not to overbake.

    Assemble the sandwiches:

    7. Let bread cool for 10-15 minutes, then remove from pan and let cool fully on a rack. Once cooled, slice bread and serve as closed or open-faced sandwiches spread with a tablespoon or two of cream cheese.


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  10. Hi Bella - Auto-correct and that awful virtual keyboard is the main reason the iPhone shouldn't replace the Blackberry for any business person. You never know what that message was really supposed to be. What is awkward in a personal email, can be a disaster
    If you love edibles growing on public streets, check out the Chestnuts on Queen Anne Hill.

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