As far as I’m concerned, the best – and quite possibly the only way to time travel is to cook.

Reading gets us only partway there – we dream ourselves into other times, other lands. But they remain just that – dreams.

Visiting ruins gets us a little closer. But, at the end of the day, ruins are simply ruins – fragments of the splendor that what once was.

But, when it comes to cooking food from ancient times? Instant time travel. In my mouth.

When I cook I am potentially eating exactly what someone long ago ate.

I can shut my eyes and focus in on the beautiful flavors of that time and place. I might as well be there.

Want to join me?

Let’s do it.

Introducing date balls. One of the world’s earliest treats. Fit enough for a king.

The most amazing thing about Date Balls is exactly how long they’ve been around. You’ll find them in Iraq today, but you also would have found them in ancient Babylon, when they were called Mersu. At least, that’s what the Yale Tablets say.

Making them is simple. There’s nothing to it. You just need a food processor or a knife and loads of patience.

Top: The rebuilt ruins of Babylon, as seen today | Bottom Left: Ruins as they stood in 1932 Right: Part of the reconstructed Ishtar Gate.

Makes 12

Ingredients:

1 cup pistachios
1 cup pitted dates
1/8-1/4 cup pistachios, ground for rolling and/or 1/8-1/4 cup shredded coconut for rolling

Method:

1. 2. 3…. now, take a deep breath and fly back in time.

But, for the sake of convenience, let’s take our food processor with us.

We begin our journey by blending dates into a paste, then add the pistachios.

Pulse until a coarse mixture forms.

It’ll ball up when you press the sweet goodness with your fingers. Form into small balls. I leveled the mixture in a tablespoon to make sure they all came out the same, then I rolled them in my hands. About half way through I washed my hands and the spoon to reduce stickiness. This made a dozen.

As a finishing touch, roll the date balls in ground pistachios or shredded coconut. The pistachios coating is more traditional, although the coconut is fun.
(make ground pistachios by pulsing a 1/4 cup in a coffee grinder or food processor.

Since I’m never good at choosing, I did both. And it was wonderful.

These are definitely going on the table at my next gathering, when we’ll all fly back in time together.

Smiling. Laughing.

And, just possibly, walking up to the Ishtar Gate, headed to a party with lots of Pistachio Date Balls.

Model of the Ishtar Gate and main procession corridor. Image by Gryffindor

While we can only dream about what it would look like, we know it would taste delicious.

Pistachio Date Balls

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The most amazing thing about Date Balls is exactly how long they’ve been around. You’ll find them in Iraq today, but you also would have found them in ancient Babylon, when they were called Mersu. At least, that’s what the Yale Tablets say. Making them is simple. There’s nothing to it. You just need a food processor or a knife.

• CourseAppetizers & Snacks
• Lifestyle5-ingredients or less, Gluten-Free, Vegan, Vegetarian
• Food TypeFruit, Sasha's Favorite Recipes

Servings	Prep Time
12 date balls	20 minutes

Servings Prep Time 12 date balls 20 minutes

Pistachio Date Balls Votes: 0 Rating: 0 You: Rate this recipe! Print Recipe The most amazing thing about Date Balls is exactly how long they’ve been around. You’ll find them in Iraq today, but you also would have found them in ancient Babylon, when they were called Mersu. At least, that’s what the Yale Tablets say. Making them is simple. There’s nothing to it. You just need a food processor or a knife. CourseAppetizers & Snacks Lifestyle5-ingredients or less, Gluten-Free, Vegan, Vegetarian Food TypeFruit, Sasha's Favorite Recipes Servings Prep Time 12 date balls 20 minutes Servings Prep Time 12 date balls 20 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 cup pistachios
• 1 cup dates , pitted
• 1/8 - 1/4 cup pistachios , ground for rolling - AND/OR-
• 1/8 - 1/4 cup shredded coconut , for rolling

Servings: date balls

Units:MetricUS Imperial

Instructions

1. In a food processor blend the dates into a paste. Add pistachios.
2. Pulse until a coarse mixture forms.
3. It’ll ball up when you press the sweet goodness with your fingers. Form into small balls. I leveled the mixture in a tablespoon to make sure they all came out the same, then I rolled them in my hands. About half way through I washed my hands and the spoon to reduce stickiness. This made a dozen.
4. As a finishing touch, roll the date balls in ground pistachios or shredded coconut. The pistachios coating is more traditional, although the coconut is fun. (Make ground pistachios by pulsing a 1/4 cup in a coffee grinder or food processor.)
5. Stores in an airtight container for several weeks.