This week’s recipe comes from Aubrey’s kitchen:

Recipes in our house always start with something we “know.”

In this case, it was date night. I’m a huge fan of puns (and so is my partner), so I knew I wanted to make something with dates—yes it’s corny but hey, it’s a direction.

Our dinner was rich and very savory, so I wanted to add to it with a dessert that kept the richness but added a healthy sweetness to it—so I came up with this, and it was a hit.

Chocolate Coconut Date Night

This serves two-four people and takes 30-40 minutes to make. You’ll need the stove on low heat, but there's no baking.

Ingredients

30g Coconut Shreds
10g Coconut Oil
5g Cacao
60-80ml Coconut Milk
Honey to taste
10-16 Medjool Dates

For the Creamy Drizzle (optional)
100-120ml Coconut Milk
Cinnamon

Directions

For the Chocolate Topping:

Using a processor—I have an immersion blender with a processor attachment—whip the coconut shreds together with the coconut oil for a couple minutes. It’s okay if it doesn’t get all the way smooth, a little texture is nice.

Add the cacao to the processor and blend until it’s an even consistency.

Put the mixture into a pot on low heat. When it starts to melt, add the coconut milk slowly while stirring. The consistency you want at the end is a bit like pudding and you don’t want this mixture to boil or burn.

Add honey to taste while stirring—I added just one “dollop” but I like my chocolate pretty dark.

As soon as the honey is incorporated remove it from the heat.

Put this in a small bowl and set it aside to cool.

For the Creamy Drizzle (optional)

I don’t have the exact measure I used for this because I just used “the rest” of the coconut milk from the 200ml box I started with.

Pour the coconut milk into a pot
Sprinkle it with cinnamon

Keep it over low heat, don’t let it boil, stir it every couple of minutes to keep it from sticking to the pot.

You’re evaporating the water here to get the consistency cream. It takes 15-30 minutes, depending on the heat and the amount you started with.
The longer you have it on the stove, the more stirring it will need because as it evaporates it congeals a bit, you want to keep the consistency even.

When it’s at a creamy consistency that you like for your drizzle, remove it from the heat.

Plating Your Dessert

Pit the dates, and open them like little vessels of sweetness—they kind of look like little hearts, don’t you think?

Then add a spoonful of your chocolate to each one so that they all have a nice bit on top—I like to add a couple of dots on the plate because I think it’s aesthetically pleasing to incorporate the dish.

Finally, add your drizzle. You can do this while it’s still warm if you like. I add a small spoonful it to each date and then I drizzle over the whole plate.

On top, I sprinkle a tiny bit more cinnamon to make it pretty.

Voila!

Eat it right away or put it in the fridge for later!

Share your Favorite Date Night Recipe in the Comments!