This date nut bread lightens up an old-school coffee shop favorite

One of the most nourishing things about food is the joyful memories it can evoke, connecting us through taste and aroma to comforting moments past.

I have vivid memories of sitting at my grandmother’s Formica kitchen table in Queens with a glass of cold milk and a thick slice of date nut bread with a schmear of cream cheese that was lovingly set in front of me for an afterschool snack.

The treat wasn’t unique to my family. As food writer Leah Koenig explains in her Politico column “The Lost Foods of New York City,” date nut bread and cream cheese sandwiches were a hallmark at the popular Chock Full o’Nuts coffee chain, and a budget-friendly staple for New Yorkers from the 1940s through the ’60s. I’ll bet my grandmother bought hers there.

This recipe re-creates that nostalgic experience in a better-for-you way, leaning on whole dates for most of the sweetness, tender whole-grain flour and healthful oil instead of butter.

Start by soaking chopped, pitted dates in hot coffee or boiling water to soften them, then puree most of the fruit with the soaking liquid and the rest of the wet ingredients — oil, egg, vanilla and a touch of maple syrup, which keeps the bread free of refined sugar. The coffee and maple syrup infuse the bread with layers of flavor and moisture. To finish the batter, you add the dry ingredients to the puree, stir in the reserved soaked dates along with the walnuts, and bake.

The loaf turns out moist and cakey, deeply flavorful and subtly sweet, and studded with crunchy walnuts and chewy dates. It’s delectable on its own, but is certainly enhanced by a rich, tangy spread of whipped cream cheese. Although I now enjoy mine with a cup of tea or coffee in the afternoon rather than a glass of milk, a slice of this tender loaf still makes me feel like a kid in my grandma’s kitchen.

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Date Nut Bread

1/3 cup (80 milliliters) neutral oil, such as light-tasting olive oil, avocado or canola, plus more for the pan

2 1/2 cups (10 ounces/283 grams) pitted dates, chopped

3/4 cup (180 milliliters) hot coffee or boiling water

1 1/2 cups (180 grams) whole-wheat pastry flour (see Substitutions)

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon fine salt

1/4 cup (60 milliliters) maple syrup

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup (120 grams) coarsely chopped walnuts

Whipped cream cheese, for serving (optional)

Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350°F. Lightly brush a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan with oil.

In a medium bowl, cover the dates with the coffee or boiling water, and soak until the liquid cools completely, about 25 minutes.

In another medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt until combined.

Use a slotted spoon to measure out 1 cup of the soaked chopped dates, and transfer to a small bowl. Transfer the remaining dates and their soaking liquid to a blender, add the oil, maple syrup, egg and vanilla, and process until smooth, stopping to scrape down the sides of the blender as needed with a flexible spatula.

Transfer the date mixture to a large bowl. Add the flour mixture in two batches, stirring each until just incorporated. Add the reserved dates and the walnuts, and stir to incorporate.

Transfer the batter to the prepared pan, spreading it out evenly and smoothing the top. Tap the pan on the counter a few times to eliminate any air bubbles. Bake for 30 minutes. Carefully remove the pan from the oven and tent the bread with foil to avoid overbrowning. Return to the oven and continue baking for 20 to 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the bread comes out clean.

Let cool in the pan for about 10 minutes, then carefully run a butter knife around the perimeter of the bread and unmold it onto a wire rack. Let cool completely, then slice and serve, with whipped cream cheese for spreading, if desired.

Substitutions: For whole-wheat pastry flour, use ​​white whole-wheat flour, or 3/4 cup (90 grams) each all-purpose flour and regular whole-wheat flour. Gluten-free? Use a cup-for cup gluten-free flour blend. For walnuts, use pecans or sunflower seeds. For maple syrup, use agave.

Variations: The bread can also be baked in an 8 1/2-by-4 1/2-inch loaf pan, but the bake time will be slightly longer.

Storage note: Store at room temperature, wrapped in foil, for up to 4 days. If freezing, wrap the loaf in foil (or slice and wrap individual slices,) then transfer to a ziptop bag and freeze for up to 3 months.

Makes 12 servings.

Nutritional information per serving (per slice, based on 12) | 262 Calories: 34g Carbohydrates, 14mg Cholesterol, 13g Fat, 4g Fiber, 4g Protein, 1g Saturated Fat, 295mg Sodium, 19g Sugar

— From cookbook author and registered dietitian nutritionist Ellie Krieger