Grandmas Date Nut Bread Recipes

GRANDMA'S DATE-NUT BREAD

Steps:

• Put raisins in a bowl. Pour boiling water over raisins; soak until raisins have flavored the water, about 20 minutes. Drain raisins, reserving the water. Discard raisins.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a loaf pan with butter.
• Bring reserved water to a boil in a small saucepan. Measure 3/4 cup boiling water into a bowl. Stir baking soda into water.
• Put dates and prunes in a large bowl. Pour baking soda-water over dates and prunes; add unsalted butter and stir until melted. Stir sugar and vanilla extract into the fruit mixture; let cool to room temperature.
• Stir egg into the fruit mixture to evenly coat. Mix flour and salt together in a small bowl; add to fruit mixture and stir. Fold walnuts into the mixture and pour into the prepared loaf pan.
• Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 50 to 65 minutes. Cool in the pans for 10 minutes before removing to cool completely on a wire rack.

GRANDMA RENEE'S DATE NUT LOAF

Steps:

• Boil sugar, milk and butter until it forms a soft ball in cool water (grandma's exact words) -- around 240 degrees.
• Fold in chopped dates and pecans, continue to cook until it pulls away from the pan (around 255 degrees).
• Pour onto wet cloth in log form - dust with powdered sugar and roll.
• Cool and cut into 20 pieces.

DATE NUT BREAD (PRE-1940'S)

Steps:

• Beat eggs add sugar.
• Add nut meats broken and dates cut in pieces.
• Sift dry ingredients together and add alternately with milk to first mixture.
• Turn into greased pan.
• Bka e350 degrees for 45 minutes.

WHOLE-WHEAT DATE NUT BREAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly coat a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan with oil. In a medium bowl, pour hot water over dates and let stand until slightly softened, about 5 minutes. Whisk in oil, egg, and vanilla. In another bowl, stir together flours, baking soda, salt, pecans, and brown sugar. Fold egg mixture into flour mixture until just combined. Pour batter into prepared pan and smooth the top with a spatula.
• Bake, rotating pan halfway through, until a tester inserted in center of loaf comes out clean, about 65 minutes. Let cool in pan on a wire rack, 20 minutes, then turn out bread and let cool completely. Wrap in parchment if giving as a gift, or slice and spread with Neufchatel and serve. (Loaf can be tightly wrapped and stored at room temperature up to 3 days.)