Name: Palm Springs Date Shakes
Total time: 30 min
Cuisine: CaliforniaUS & Canada
Ingredients: 6 ounces (170 grams) pitted dried dates , roughly chopped (about 1 cup); ⅔ cup cold whole milk; ⅛ teaspoon table salt; 2 cups vanilla ice cream

Why This Recipe Works

The Coachella Valley in Southern California is home to the nation's largest concentration of date trees. Because of this, the date milkshake was invented: a caramelly, thick, and creamy concoction made with ice cream, milk, and dried dates. We use a high ratio of dates to ice cream for this version. We call for soaking the dried dates in boiling water before blending to soften the dates, allowing them to blend more smoothly. For a sweet-salty shake, we added a touch of salt to enhance the flavors.

Before You Begin

We developed this recipe using Medjool dates. You can use any kind of date, but we suggest using the best-quality ones you can find. Place your serving glasses in the freezer before making the shakes.

Instructions

Place dates in heatproof bowl. Cover with boiling water (about 1 cup) and let sit for 10 minutes. Drain dates and let cool completely, at least 15 minutes.

Combine milk, salt, and dates in blender. Process until thick paste forms and no chunks of dates remain, about 1 minute, scraping down sides of blender as needed. Add ice cream and process until smooth, about 1 minute. Serve in chilled glasses.