A Better Way to Do the Afternoon Sweet Treat
Date & Dark Chocolate Bark with Tahini and Strawberry
There’s nothing wrong with wanting something sweet. In fact, we’re much more interested in what goes into it than trying to remove sweet foods altogether.
This Date & Dark Chocolate Bark is a good example. It has everything you want from an afternoon treat — rich dark chocolate, sweet Medjool dates, creamy tahini and sharp strawberry — with ingredients that bring a little more to the table nutritionally, too.
Why we love it
We don’t think workplace nutrition should be about restriction or telling people what they shouldn’t eat.
We’d rather look at how we can make the food people genuinely want to eat work harder nutritionally.
Here, whole dates replace refined sugar while retaining their naturally occurring fibre. Tahini and seeds add healthy fats, protein and minerals, and dark chocolate brings plenty of flavour without needing a long list of ingredients.
The result? A sweet treat that tastes like a treat, because it is one, while delivering a little more nutritionally too.
Date & Dark Chocolate Bark
With tahini and strawberry
Makes: 12 shards
Prep: 15 minutes + chilling
No bake | High fibre | Gut-friendly | Antioxidant-rich
Ingredients
For the date base
250g Medjool dates, pitted
Pinch of sea salt
For the chocolate topping
150g dark chocolate (70%+), broken into pieces
2 tbsp tahini
To finish
10g freeze-dried strawberries, lightly crushed
1 tbsp flaxseed/linseed or mixed seeds (optional)
Method
Line a baking tray with baking paper.
Slice each date open and lay them flat on the paper, cut-side down, in a single tight layer.
Cover with a second sheet of baking paper and press or roll firmly until the dates fuse into one even slab.
Peel away the top sheet and sprinkle the date layer with a pinch of sea salt.
Melt the dark chocolate gently, then stir through the tahini until smooth and glossy.
Pour the chocolate mixture over the date layer and spread evenly to the edges.
Scatter over the crushed freeze-dried strawberries and seeds.
Chill for at least one hour, or until completely firm.
Snap or slice into 12 shards and enjoy.
The nutritional bit
Naturally sweet, with the fibre intact
Medjool dates provide sweetness in their whole-food form, meaning you’re getting naturally occurring sugars alongside fibre and nutrients including potassium.
A little mineral powerhouse
Tahini is made from sesame seeds and provides nutrients including calcium, iron and magnesium. Dates and dark chocolate also contribute magnesium, an essential mineral involved in processes including normal muscle and nerve function and energy metabolism.
Plants bring more than vitamins
Cacao, strawberries and sesame contain naturally occurring plant compounds including polyphenols. Using a variety of plant foods is one of the reasons we encourage diversity across our menus rather than focusing on individual 'superfoods'.
Fibre for the gut
Dates, seeds and strawberries all contribute fibre. Fibre supports normal digestive function and helps feed the diverse community of microorganisms living in our gut.
Make it yours
Once you have the basic recipe, it’s very easy to change it up. Swap the strawberries for freeze-dried raspberries or cherries, scatter over chopped pistachios or flaked almonds for extra crunch, or finish with a light dusting of cacao or flaky sea salt.
The bark will keep for up to one week refrigerated, or can be frozen for up to two months.
Because eating well doesn’t have to mean saying no to chocolate. Sometimes it just means thinking a little more about what you put underneath it.