Sticky. Sweet. Gooey. Eating a date is like biting into a caramel cloud, its sweet and soft flesh tinged with molasses and flavor. Dates are one of the oldest cultivated foods, with over 600 varieties grown around the world today. From the quintessentially British sticky toffee pudding and its luscious butterscotch sauce, to wholesome date and sesame flatbreads, spicy ginger and date jam, the creamiest, honeyed date cheesecake, and California's first-quenching date shakes, this book of date desserts is like a dense, shady date grove, packed with delicious, natural and healthy recipes that demonstrate the versatility of baking with dates and date syrup. The date palm's journey, across time and continents, from Mesopotamia and Arabia to Europe and the Mediterranean and recently to North America's Coachella Valley is also evoked in stunning photographs taken on travels to palm fringed locales. This is food for the tastebuds but also for healthy living: sensual, delicious desserts, illuminating the sun-drenched tale of the date fruit, its story, past and present, and the food that continues to provide vitality and comfort to countless travelers on arduous journeys.