Vegan Banana Date Cake/Bread

Bananas and dates are two miracle foods. Both come from a tree and have nourished the ancients and our bodies with healthy glucose and carbohydrates. Together, they make a wonderful and sweet bread or cake when touched with a hint of brown sugar. 

The date palm tree (Phoenix dactylifera) is one of the oldest fruit-bearing trees in civilization. The ancients not only used dates as a source of energy, but used the leaves to weave baskets, brooms and ropes. Ancients used the stalk as a foundation to other structures. Even the tree's sap was fermented into wine.

It is no secret that the date tree has been an important part of human civilization in terms of Maslow's Hierarchy or needs. Originating in the Middle East, today, dates are still used in Middle Eastern and Israeli cuisine. ​

According to healthynakeddates.com, Dates in Biblical Times, "In Ezekiel 47:12, the old testament speaks of the trees that grow along the sandy river banks, whose leaves will never turn brown or fall. The fruit would provide food and the leaves medicine for the Isrealites as they made their new home in Canaan on the banks of the Jordan River.

This was the fabled ‘promised land,’ also known as the ‘land of milk and honey.’ Jericho, along the Mediterranean coast was referred to as the ‘City of Palms.’ This region was also the land of the Canaanites and the Philistines, located where Lebanon and Beirut stand today. The region was also known for its olives, grapes, figs and pomegranates."

Leviticus 23:40  
"And you shall take on the first day the fruit of splendid trees, branches of palm trees and boughs of leafy trees and willows of the brook, and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God seven days."

In modern times, dates are a staple food in the vegan diet. Used as a sweetener, thickener or as a base, dates are versatile in their culinary use. I hope you enjoy this almost-naturally sweet bread as a source of nourishment in the morning or as a snack. 

Vegan Banana Date Cake/Bread
​Prep Time: 7 minutes
Bake Time: 45-50 minutes 
Makes one 9-inch cake 

Ingredients:
4 ripe bananas
1 2/3 cup nondairy milk
2 cups pastry flour
1/2 heaping cup chopped dates
1/2 cup coconut oil, melted
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tbsp flax meal or seed (optional)
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla
pinch of salt
optional topping: one sliced banana 

Directions: 
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

Mix all the dry ingredients into a bowl. In a separate bowl, mash the bananas and mix the sugar, coconut oil, milk and vanilla in the bowl. Make a well in the dry ingredients and pour the wet into the dry. Fold the ingredients without over mixing. Once a "dough" forms, fold in the dates. 

Spray or grease a nine inch pie pan. Pour the ingredients evenly. If needed, top the ingredients with a sliced banana with whatever pattern you desire. 

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