Dry Fruit Burfi with No Added Sugar: Dates, Figs & Whole Nuts

Festivals in India mean sweets, and most traditional mithai is made with plenty of sugar. This dry fruit burfi from the Wholesome Living Through Food series, a collaboration between Yoga & You and Home Cooking, takes a different route: it's sweetened entirely with dates and figs, with no added sugar, and packed with whole roasted nuts. The result is a rich, chewy, nutty sweet that's easy to make at home for Diwali or any celebration.

Why dates and figs?

Dates and dried figs are naturally very sweet and sticky. That makes them perfect for binding a burfi without sugar syrup. They also bring fibre and a deep, caramel-like flavour. The nuts (almonds, cashews, walnuts and pistachios) add crunch, protein and healthy fats. Read more about dates in Ayurveda and ghee.

An honest note: no added sugar doesn't mean sugar-free. Dates and figs are themselves high in natural sugars, and the nuts and ghee make this a calorie-dense sweet. It's a more wholesome choice than sugar-laden mithai, but it's still a treat, best enjoyed as a small piece rather than a handful.

How the burfi comes together

The full ingredients and method are in the recipe card above. These are the tips from the video that make the difference:

• Roast the nuts slowly. Roast them in a couple of teaspoons of ghee on a medium flame until golden and crunchy. It takes a while, so be patient: an even roast gives the best flavour and crunch. Cool them completely before mixing.
• Grind the dates with ghee, not water. A spoonful of ghee helps the dates grind into a smooth paste and makes it easier to scrape out of the jar. The cook stresses that no water goes in at any stage, which is what helps the burfi set firm.
• Keep the flame low. Cook the date and fig mixture gently in ghee until it softens, then fold in the nuts on a low flame. The mixture is thick and sticky, so mixing takes a few minutes.
• Choose your chunk size. The video keeps the nuts in big pieces for "a nice big chunk of nuts in every bite". Chop them smaller if you prefer a smoother burfi that's easier to slice.
• Line and grease the tin. Butter paper on the base and ghee on all sides make the set block easy to turn out.
• Give it time to set. At least 2 hours. The cook left it for about 6 hours, and overnight also works. Then cut into squares.

Serving and storing

Serve small squares as a festive sweet, or enjoy a piece as a mindful treat or an energy boost around your yoga practice, as the video suggests. Store the burfi in an airtight container in a cool place for about a week, or in the refrigerator in warm weather.

Make it your own

• Nuts: use any combination you like. Hazelnuts, peanuts or seeds such as pumpkin and sunflower all work.
• Flavour: add a pinch of nutmeg, a few strands of saffron or a little desiccated coconut with the cardamom.
• Coating: roll the mixture into a log, coat it in poppy seeds or desiccated coconut and slice it into rounds.

For more wholesome recipes, try our masala makhana or traditional sundal.

A note on diet

Individual nutritional needs vary. Because dates and figs are high in natural sugars, people with diabetes should treat this burfi like any other sweet and check portions with their doctor or dietitian. It contains tree nuts, so it isn't suitable for anyone with a nut allergy.