Banana Date Buttercups

Last year, while my husband and I were watching Shark Tank, I saw an episode for this no sugar added date spread called Wanna Date. The founder of the company, Melissa Bartow, is who initially drew my interest to her product. She was young, spunky, confident, but most importantly, she was SO passionate about her product. To boot, we all know how hard it is to find commercially sold SCD legal products, so seeing that episode gave me a glimmer of hope that her products (minus the chocolate flavor) could truly be SCD legal. I began following Wanna Date on Instagram (@EatWannaDate) and reached out to Melissa to ask if they added anything extra to their products other than what was listed on their labels. I immediately knew she ran her company Instagram page herself when I reached out, told her I had a question, and she casually asked,

“What’s up?!” and proceeded to answer my question by telling me they don’t add any anti-caking “crap” to their products.

I love it when a company is not PC and can just act real, and doesn’t have a team of “experts” running their page. It says so much about a company when the founder is still so involved.

Melissa assured me that they didn’t add any ingredients that aren’t already listed on their labels. I asked if they use any anti-caking agents, like I mentioned above, and she confirmed that they do not. Their products have no added sugar or sugar syrups; they use ground vanilla bean for their vanilla flavor, and the dates they use are Deglet Noor, which haven’t been packed in sugar. She told me she’s just as sensitive as I am to processed foods and hidden ingredients, and that she eats Whole30 style, which was very reassuring. Those who care so much about what is going insides their bodies very likely have integrity and care just as much about what goes inside the bodies of others.

For the purposes of something being SCD legal, you do have to get this type of confirmation on company letterhead via a hardcopy letter, so I do want to put that disclaimer out there. I did not send a hardcopy letter to Melissa but rather, I sent an email and followed-up via Instagram. Personally, I have been on SCD for more than 2 years and feel comfortable with virtual confirmations of SCD legality of a product but each person has to do what they feel most comfortable with. So, please, proceed at your own discretion. I have ordered Wanna Date twice now and really love having something readily available for me to healthily snack on, since anyone on SCD knows that we pretty much have to cook 100% of our own meals.

The Wanna Date date spreads come in the following flavors: Chocolate, Cinnamon, Original, Pumpkin Spice, and Vanilla. As mentioned, only the chocolate flavor would not be SCD legal since chocolate isn’t allowed on SCD. However, after 2+ years on SCD and according to what’s allowed in the BTVC book, I have successfully introduced chocolate/cacao and have done well with it. I have tried all the Wanna Date date spread flavors and although it’s tough to pick an absolute favorite, I would probably say my #1 favorite is chocolate (it tastes like pudding to me! So good!), with a close tie between vanilla and cinnamon next. But all the flavors are amazing and have their own uniqueness to them. In addition, each flavor only has 25 calories a tbsp, is vegan, oil free, Paleo, has no added sugars, and is cholesterol free. I feel like I’ve hit the jackpot with these yummy date spreads! You really can’t find a more wholesome and nutrient-dense product.

If you follow Wanna Date on Instagram, you’ll see that Melissa always posts fun recipes to make with her date spreads (things I would have never thought of!), so I decided to try the banana date buttercups she posted. She didn’t provide exact measurements, so I played around with it myself and came up with this recipe.

Ingredients:

• 2 bananas
• 24 tbsp Wanna Date date spread (use the flavor or flavors of your choice but no chocolate if you want to keep it SCD legal)
• 1/2 cup coconut milk (or non-dairy milk of your choice)

Preparation:

Fill each cupcake liner or silicon cupcake mold with 2 tbsp of date spread. Freeze for an hour or until firm.

Blend the bananas and coconut milk until smooth.

Pour the blended bananas mixture on top of the frozen date spread (about 1.5 tbsp in each silicon cupcake mold)

Freeze for several hours or until hardened completely and enjoy!

This is such a healthy treat to eat that is relatively low calorie, too, which is a win-win in my book. I love eating one between meals to hold me over or after a meal for dessert when I want to satisfy my sweet tooth without overindulging.

Nutrition facts per serving (serves 12): 75 calories, 0.6 g fat, 0.5 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 0 mg sodium, 0.2 g protein, 19 g carbs, 2.5 g fiber, 12.6 g sugar