Sweet Date and Pistachio Focaccia

 

This recipe is Joseph's focaccia recipe that I made my own by turning it sweet and putting tasty sweet things in it. He uses it as a canvass for all sorts of savory things. My favorite is the roasted squash, gorgonzola and walnut with herbs. 😚

My baker and his taste tester 

But this recipe was born out of an impending snow storm. My mother-in-law always makes cinnamon rolls during a snowstorm. I have tried cinnamon rolls a bunch of times. I actually have a cinnamon roll recipe here on the blog. But I have always been unhappy with the dough of my cinnamon rolls. I knew that my boys would be out shoveling lots of snow during this storm, and I wanted to make cinnamon rolls to help sustain them...but I wanted the dough to be soft and pillowy and dslicious. I realized I really wanted to make a sweet fococcia. I also wanted there to be some substance, not just sugar and bread. I went with what I had which was dates and pistachios, but I look forward to trying this with some other options sometime soon. 

Joseph did make a gulten free focaccia for me over Christmas, and it was incredible. This version was for the boys, and I did not feel the need to make it gluten free, so I will create a separate post for that recipe. 

Sweet Date & Pistachio Focaccia

Ingredients:

4 cups flour

1 tsp salt (5g)

3 1/2 - 4 cups water (110 degrees F)

2 packages of yeast (5 teaspoons)

1/2 tsp sugar

Toppings:

10 whole dates, pits removed

1/2 cup shelled pistachios

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/3 cup coconut oil

Cinnamon & Cardamom to taste

A satisfied customer 

Directions:

1. Sift flour, salt, yeast and sugar in a large bowl. Add your warm water and mix the dough until combined. The dough should be wet and sticky.

2. Rub the top of the dough with olive oil then tightly cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Leave in a warm place to ferment for at least 6 hours. You can ferment overnight and up to 24 hours, depending on how sharp you want your dough to be. 

3. Fold the dough every quarter of your ferment time. To fold the dough, grab one side of the dough in the bowl, pull gently and lay it on top. Go around the bowl and continue to grab and lay on top until you have gone all the way around. 4-5 folds.

4. When the dough is done fermenting, line a 9x13 pan with parchment paper and  generously rub with coconut oil. (if you are making a savory fococcia, you can use oilve oil here) Place your dough in the pan and gently stretch it, pushing to to the edges of the pan. Cover the dough again with plastic wrap and leave it to prove for an hour.

5. While the dough rests, preheat your oven to 450 degrees and prepare your toppings. For this sweet recipe, pulse dates and pistachios until they are a fine crumb. Add the sugar, coconut oil, cinnamon and cardamom to the food processor and pulse to combine. I used about 2 tsp of cinnamon and 1/2 tsp cardamom. 

6. Remove the plastic from the dough. Sprinkle the date and pistachio topping over the dough, then push the topping into the dough, forming a dimple effect. You can actually pinch the dough to get the topping down inside more too if you like that. Sprinkle with cinnamon.

7. Bake at 450 for 15-20 minutes, or until the loaf is golden and springs back when poked. Remove from the overn and let cool for 10-15 minutes. Remove from the pan and cool on a cooling rack. Store in an airtight container...that is if you have any leftovers!

Date Balls: A Riddle Christmas Classic

 Christmas 2025 was a unique one. We were not sure how well I would be able to travel post hip-replacement, so we decided to stay in Boston. We were excited that Keith's parents were able to join us. One of our family's favorite holiday treat recipes is date balls, or as we affectionately call them, "goat eyes." As far as we know this recipe originates with Keith's grandmother Virginia Riddle. She made them for her grandbabies, and Keith's mom makes them for my boys. This year they got the pleasure of making date balls together, which was a fun activity for a cold Boston winter because it does take a team. (more on that in a minute)* 

I also had all my boys together ❤️

This recipe is one of the older family recipes and it does have a few quirks that I had to work out and decipher.

Christmas doggie for cute points

The original recipe calls for "one can of angel flake coconut." I have not seen a can of coconut in the store for ages. Thankfully, you can look it up on Google and find out how much coconut is in a can of angel flake coconut. The answer is 1 & 1/3 cup...your welcome. I have also updated the recipe a bit. It calls for two sticks of margarine. I don't typically use margarine anymore. We used butter and it worked just fine. 

*A note on the team activity: This recipe is cooked on the stove. The method is more like a candy than a cookie. The tricky bit is that the balls must be formed out of the hot dough before it cools or it is too stiff to shape. It is helpful to have a group of people shaping the dough to get it all shaped before it cools.We have always consumed these as balls, but I wonder if it would taste just as good to press the mix into a bar pan and cut it later...I will do more research on this idea. It may save some burned fingers. 

Date Balls a.k.a "Goat Eyes"

Ingredients:

2 sticks Butter

1 cup Brown Sugar

1 cup Granulated Sugar

1 lb Chopped Dates

1 1/3 cups Shredded Coconut

2 cups Chopped Pecans

4 cups Rice Krispies

Powdered Sugar

Directions:

1. In a heavy-bottomed stock pot, over medium heat, melt the two sticks of butter. When the butter is just warm and melted, add the sugars, dates and coconut. Stir to combine all the ingredients well. Cook the mixture, stirring constantly the sugars are melted and the butter is all incorporated. Continue to cook for 6 minutes.

2. Add the Rice Krispies and pecans, mix well.

3. While the mixture is still warm, form into small, bite-sized balls. Be sure to work fast before the mixture cools. Toss the shaped balls in powdered sugar.

4. Date balls should be stored in an airtight container with some extra powdered sugar. 

*Granny has a note that these freeze well, which is probably because she would make these in advance of family coming and they would keep. We never have to freeze them because they dissapear so quickly. 

Marinated Tofu "Feta"

 As a Greek girl who doesn't do dairy anymore I do miss my feta cheese. I saw this recipe and with very low expectations, figured I would try it. I was pleasantly surprised with the results. This recipe delivers savory, salty and firm little tofu squares that I have used in all my favorite Greek recipes that use feta:  Greek salad, spanakopita and it made a great a Greek omelet. This tofu also doubles well for paneer if you are into making Indian cheese curries.

The best part is that it is super simple. Mix the marinade, dice the tofu and put it in the refrigerator foa day. Then it is also a very convenient and tasty source of protein.

Marinated Tofu "Feta"

Ingredients:

12 oz. Extra Firm Tofu, drained and cubed

1/3 cup Apple Cider Vinegar

1/3 cup Lemon Juice 

2 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil

2 tablespoons Nutritional Yeast

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon Oregano

1/4 tsp Chili Flakes

2 cloves Garlic, diced (I had to use granulated garlic once, it still turned out fine)

Directions:

1. Prepare your tofu. Drain it, pat it dry, and cut into cubes. You can also just tear it if you want. The more surface area you have the more flavor will be absorbed by the tofu.

2. Mix all the marinade ingredients together in your container. You will want to store your tofu in a container with a lid or a mason jar. 

3. Combine the prepared tofu with the marinade, close the container and give it a good shake. 

4. Let the tofu sit in the marinade for at least 12 hours. The longer it sits the better it will taste.