Thursday Night

The Night of Mushkil Gusha

"When your need is greater than your want,
Mushkil Gusha will appear and remove all difficulties"

People around the world tell the Story of Mushkil Gusha on Thursday night, sharing dates and goodwill. When friends met at my house for Mushkil Gusha every Thursday night, we made different deserts containing dates.

The Story of Mushkil Gusha is not composed in a Western, linear style, but rather in a way designed to bypass the logical brain (which gets preoccupied with certain elements in the story) and go directly to essence.

What does the quote above mean? Another way of saying it is "When you quit making it important and keep your mood up, resistance will be easily transcended."

If you hold Muskil Gusha night at your place and would welcome new friends,
. If you've got some good date recipes,
we'd like to hear about them, too.

The Tale of Mushkil Gusha, Retold by Eric Twose

The Magic of Mushkil Gusha, Told by Aaron Shepard

Date-filled Oatmeal Cookies

1 cup pitted dates, chopped
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup water
1 stick butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1-1/2 cups flower
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1-1/4 cups oatmeal

Preheat oven to 350. Put dates, granulated sugar and 1/2 cup water in a pot and cook slowly until thick and smooth (about 15 minutes); set aside. Cream the butter, then add the brown sugar, mix well. Mix together the flour, baking soda and salt and add to the butter and brown sugar, beating well. Combine with the oatmeal, mixing thoroughly. Add about 2 to 4 tablespoons water, enough to form the dough into a ball so that it can be rolled. Refrigerate for about 15 minutes to facilitate rolling. Roll 1/8 inch thick. Cut into 2-inch rounds. Spread filling on half the rounds, sprinkle walnuts on top of filing. Put the other half on top of each round, press edges firmly together. Bake about 15 minutes, until browned. (Adapted from a recipe in The Fannie Farmer Cookbook)

Honey Date and Nut Bars

2 tablespoons melted butter
1/2 cup honey
2 eggs, well beaten
1/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
Dash of salt
1/2 cup dates, cut fine
1/2 cup chopped nuts
Confectioners' sugar

Preheat the oven to 350. Butter an 8-inch square cake pan. Mix all the ingredients except confectioners' sugar together in the order given. Spread in the pan and bake for about 25 minutes or until firm and delicately brown. Cool for 5 to 10 minutes, then cut in bars 1 x 4 inches and roll in confectioners' sugar while still warm. (The Fannie Farmer Cookbook)

Quick Date Bread

Preheat oven to 350. Have all ingredients at room temperature. Sift into a bowl:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup white or 1/2 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons double-acting baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
Melt and cool slightly 2 tablespoons butter
Beat 1 egg until light, beat in 1 cup milk. Add the melted butter.
eat the liquid ingredients into the sifted ones until well mixed. Fold in
1/2 cup chopped dates
1/2 cup chopped nuts
Put into a greased bread pan and bake about 40 minutes.
(From The Joy of Cooking)

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