Blackberry Date Spread
This is a quick, easy recipe for a very healthy jam that works for sandwiches, desserts, pastries, or chocolate bonbons. Only two ingredients make a fruity yet not-too-sweet treat! The trick to this recipe is relying on the natural pectin in the blackberries to create the gelling effect. Boil off about a third of the ingredients' total weight to reduce the water content.
Ingredients
Whole Blackberries: 1 lb. (454grams)
Chopped Dates or date paste: ½ cup (110 g) (date sugar 1/3 cup)
Preparation
Utensils
- Cooking Pot
- Potato masher
- Blender
- Measuring cup or scale
- Sieve
- Bowl
- Storage container
Place the whole blackberries into a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan with 3T of water to prevent scorching. Weigh the saucepan and blackberries.
Chop the dates
Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat. Simmer steadily for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring frequently. When the berries are soft, pulverize with a potato masher. Once the berries' liquid has been reduced by a third, add the date sugar.
Add the dates/date sugar into the pan. The boiling liquid hydrates and softens the dry, fibrous date/date sugar particles. Stir in for a couple of minutes until they appear to have dissolved.
Important: Do not keep the dates in boiling water for more than a couple of minutes, as it will begin to develop a caramel aftertaste.
Pour the blackberry and date slurry directly into a high-powered blender.
Blend at high speed for 1 full minute. Blending the mixture while it is hot forces the softened date fibers to disintegrate seamlessly into the fruit pulp. This will also help separate the fruit fiber from the seeds. Some seeds may be ground up, but that is not the goal, since the sieve will remove them in the next step.
Immediately press the hot, blended puree through a medium mesh sieve into a clean bowl. Press firmly with a spoon or ladle to extract all the liquid, leaving only the blackberry seeds behind.
Additional Tips
Storage
This spread will store for a few weeks in the fridge and several months in the freezer. So if you make a lot at once, freeze some of it.
Notes
This recipe is easily scaled.
Reduce the dates or date sugar by 20% for a more tart but still acceptably sweet product.
Every batch will vary slightly due to the berries' pectin content, ripeness, variety, etc. If you are not sure, take a spoonful of the liquid, cool it to room temperature, and see if it gels sufficiently for your needs.
Recipe by
Lester Karplus
Posted September 20, 2026