Date and Walnut Loaf

Last Sunday my beautiful friend, Denita, hosted a Morning Tea for her Bridesmaids to talk all things bridal. I am lucky enough to be one of five Bridesmaids, who are all heading over to America in August for her wedding. I am so incredibly excited, I can hardly contain myself!

De served up a gorgeous Date and Walnut Loaf with Cinnamon Cream Cheese for Morning Tea, which we ate while sipping Green Tea.

De is a recently retired Athlete - she was a gymnast for years and then became an Aerial Skier (I know, right?! Check this out). So she is very aware of how important it is to feed your body with good nutrients. We have so much in common with food preferences and are always exchanging muesli and yoghurt tips. Naturally I knew we'd be eating something delicious but also on the healthy side for Morning Tea. This loaf was exactly that. De got the recipe from taste.com.au (recipe link here), and I cannot wait to make it again myself. It was so yummy.

To make the Cinnamon Cream Cheese, De combined 200g low-fat Cream Cheese with 1 tablespoon of Honey and 1 teaspoon of Cinnamon.

The loaf was super moist and delightfully sweet thanks to the natural sugar of the dates - the recipe uses very little added sugar. The recipe also instructs you to rehydrate the dried dates with boiling water and some maple syrup, which is a nice little trick. While it is fairly dense, a slice of this loaf doesn't sit heavy. The walnuts are a lovely addition, providing some crunch and allowing a break from the sweetness. I used to consistently leave walnuts out of my cakes, cookies and muffins, but now I adore them.

After we ate a delicious slice (or two) and engaged in some bridal chatter, we set off to DFO to look for Bridesmaid dresses. It ended up being a really easy process. We're lucky that we all have fairly similar body shapes, so the same dress suited us all perfectly. They're really pretty, with a hint of 50's style, in a lovely mint colour.

Having my dress hanging in my wardrobe is making me even more excited for August! Every time I see it, I get a stirring of glee and have to do a little dance. It is going to be a beautiful wedding.

Thanks for the lovely day, De, and for introducing me to this delectable recipe! Only 5 months to go...

Heidi xo