We’ll talk about these delicious, decadent Vegan Cream Cheese Stuffed Dates in a second, but let me start by saying:

We made it to China!

Overall the trip went incredibly smoothly. We had two rows to ourselves on the 15 hour flight from Houston to Beijing and being able to lay down was a game changer. Harper also had a bassinet and either slept or played happily the entire flight. We also only had one 1 1/2 hour layover the entire itinerary and it was just the right amount of time to get through customs and get to our second flight. Sadly, it wasn’t enough time for 3 of our bags to make it and Brett is currently picking them up from the airport as I type this! When they called yesterday to tell us that our bags had arrived, they said that they were damaged. We had no idea what that meant and since they called I’ve been trying hard not to worry about all my precious jars of nut butter (jk…but seriously). Thankfully, Brett just texted me a few minutes ago and said that it was only the handle of one of our bags that was damaged and everything else made it okay. Woot woot! That suitcase was already on the fritz anyways, so we’re just happy that all of our stuff made it in one piece. 

We couldn’t be happier to be home in our apartment in China. We’re definitely dealing with jet lag (Harper baby especially), but we still have enough energy to unpack, organize, make trips to the market, cook food in our tiny kitchen and see friends. We’re living the dream and feeling incredibly thankful to be back in our little city…this time with Harper! I’m sure future posts will be full of funny Chinese vs. American culture stories and how the locals here are reacting to Harper, but we’ll save those for later.

Let’s talk about the simplest, most delicious dessert ever: Vegan Cream Cheese Stuffed Dates!

Medjool Dates:

You can use any kind of dates that you want for this recipe, but I HIGHLY recommend using Medjool dates if you can. They are the best dates in my opinion as they are huge and super sweet and juicy and fairly easy to find. Because they’re so large, they are also easier to stuff with cream cheese. I love getting Medjool dates from international grocery stores when I can, but if I have to, I order them online from Amazon (or Taobao). They are usually a little more expensive than other kinds of dates, but in my opinion the extra money spent is totally worth it. Deglet Noor are also popular and run a little cheaper. Just use whichever dates you desire really!

Vegan Cream Cheese Substitute:

There are so many amazing kinds of vegan cream cheese substitutes now! My current favorite brands are Kite Hill and Miyoko’s. I love these two brands the most because of how simple their ingredients are and how their cream cheeses are nut based instead of other brands which use oils and thickeners. Some other brands are Tofutti, Daiya, Follow Your Heart and Go Veggie! 

Homemade vegan cream cheese is also another option! When we’re in China, I like to whip up an easy vegan cream cheese substitute using cashews as the base. If you want to do the same, check out my 4 ingredient Dairy Free Cinnamon Maple Cream Cheese. It’s a sweet cream cheese, so it would be different than using cultured, tangy cream cheese, but it would be just as delicious stuffed inside of a juice medjool date!

Dessert Recipes with Dates:

If you search through my Dessert Recipes, you’ll see a lot of dessert recipes with dates. Some of these recipes are sweetened entirely with dates making them a super healthy snack option too. Definitely check out some of the date sweetened dessert recipes below and please let me know if you give any (or all!) of them a try!

Salted Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Stuffed Dates

No Bake Breakfast Cookies

5 Ingredient Date Sweetened Chickpea Cookie Dough

Cinnamon Oatmeal Cookie Dough Balls

Homemade Mint chip Brownie Lara Bar Bites

Date Sweetened Chocolate Sauce

Vegan Almond Joy Brownie Bites

4 Ingredient Chocolate Cherry Mousse

Homemade Vegan Twix Bars

I’d love to know if you make these simple Vegan Cream Cheese Stuffed Dates and what you think! I completely forgot to mention that this recipes was actually my mother-in-law’s suggestion. As soon as she mentioned them I knew I had to make them and share the simple recipe with you all. Please let me know if you give them a try. Leave a comment down below, rate the recipe and share it with others!

Help The World Eat More Plants!

Eat Consciously,

Faith

Summary

Recipe Name

Vegan Cream Cheese Stuffed Dates

Faith VanderMolen

2018-08-27

Preparation Time

10M

Total Time

10M