Atole de Dátil Bajacaliforniano

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Heavy 4-quart pot or clay olla
• •Wooden spoon long enough to reach the bottom of the pot
• •Fine-mesh strainer (optional, for a smoother body)
• •High-powered blender
• •Small clay jarros for serving

Instructions

1. 1

   Soften the dates

   Place the pitted dates in a bowl and cover with hot, not boiling, tap water. Hot softens them. Boiling water turns the skins bitter and you will taste it later. Let them sit for fifteen minutes, until you can press a date flat between two fingers without resistance. Drain.

   If your dates come from a bag and feel dry, soak them twenty minutes instead of fifteen. The flesh has to give completely or the atole will be gritty.
2. 2

   Steep the canela in milk

   In a heavy 4-quart pot, combine the whole milk, evaporated milk, and the canela stick. Set over medium-low heat. Bring it to the edge of a simmer, where you see bubbles forming around the rim but no rolling boil. Hold it there for ten minutes so the canela releases its oils into the milk. Mexican canela is soft and flaky; it gives up its flavor easily and turns bitter if it boils hard.

3. 3

   Blend the date base

   Transfer the softened dates to a blender. Add two cups of the warm canela-infused milk from the pot. Blend on high for two full minutes, until the dates dissolve into a smooth caramel-colored cream with no visible flecks of skin. This is where the salted-caramel character of the atole comes from. The dates of San Ignacio carry their own toasty sweetness; you are not adding caramel flavor, you are releasing what is already in the fruit.

   Strain the date puree through a fine-mesh sieve if you want a glass-smooth atole. Press hard on the solids and discard what is left in the strainer. For a more rustic body, the way they pour it at the ranchos near Mulege, skip the straining.
4. 4

   Slake the masa

   In a separate bowl, whisk the masa harina with one cup of cold water until completely smooth. No lumps. Cold water, not warm. Warm water cooks the starch on contact and you end up with a paste that will not dissolve. The slurry should look like thin cream. Asi se hace y punto.

5. 5

   Build the atole

   Return the blended date mixture to the pot of canela-infused milk. Stir well with a wooden spoon. Whisk the masa slurry once more and pour it into the pot in a steady stream while you stir continuously. Add the salt. Keep the heat at medium-low. The atole has to come up slowly, with you stirring the bottom and corners of the pot so the masa does not catch and scorch. A scorched atole tastes burnt all the way through and there is no rescuing it.

6. 6

   Cook to body

   Cook for twelve to fifteen minutes, stirring almost constantly. The atole will thicken visibly around minute eight, then deepen as the masa fully cooks. It should coat the back of the wooden spoon and leave a clean line when you draw your finger across it. Pull a small spoonful onto a saucer and taste it. The raw-corn edge of the masa should be completely gone. If you taste any chalkiness, give it three more minutes.

7. 7

   Finish and taste

   Stir in the vanilla. Taste the atole. The dates of Baja Sur are sweet enough that most batches need no sugar, but if your dates were on the dry side, grate in the piloncillo a little at a time until the sweetness is honest, not cloying. Add the pinch of flaky salt at the very end. Salt is what makes the date taste like caramel instead of just sweet. La sal es lo que despierta al dátil. Remove the canela stick.

8. 8

   Serve in clay

   Ladle into clay jarros, the small handled mugs that hold heat without burning your hand. Dust the top of each with ground canela and a few finely chopped dates so the drinker sees what is inside. Serve immediately. Atole waits for nobody. As it cools, the masa keeps tightening and the drink turns from velvet to pudding.

Chef Tips

• •If you can get true Baja dates, the zahidi or medjool varieties from a vendor who sources from Mulege or San Ignacio, use them. Outside Mexico, a good Medjool from a reliable produce market is the closest stand-in. Dried, pre-packaged grocery-store dates that taste of nothing will give you an atole that tastes of nothing. Si no conoces el mercado, no conoces la cocina.
• •Mexican canela is non-negotiable. The hard, dark cinnamon sticks sold as cassia in most American supermarkets are a different bark entirely, bitter and aggressive, and they will fight the date instead of supporting it. Mexican canela is pale, soft, and flaky. Ask for canela de Ceilan if there is any doubt.
• •Do not skip the salt. I know it reads strange in a sweet drink. The pinch at the end is what turns the date sugar into the flavor of salted caramel. Without it, the atole is just sweet. With it, the atole is what Dona Carmela serves you in San Ignacio.

Advance Preparation

• •The date puree (blended dates and warm milk from step 3) can be made up to one day ahead and refrigerated. Bring it back to a gentle warmth before continuing.
• •The finished atole can be cooled and refrigerated for up to two days. Reheat slowly over medium-low heat, whisking constantly, and loosen with a splash of warm milk as needed; the masa will have set considerably overnight.
• •Do not freeze. The masa breaks and the texture goes grainy on thawing.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 300g)