Chopping the dates for these squares is easier, and less messy, if you use kitchen shears or scissors to cut them.
- Portion size 30 servings
- Credits : Canadian Living Magazine: May 2010
Ingredients
Crust and Topping:
Date Filling:
Method
Date Filling: In bowl, combine dates with boiling water; cover and let stand for 20 minutes. Stir in cinnamon, nutmeg and salt; mash with fork until smooth.Crust and Topping: In food processor, pulse together oats, flour, brown sugar, salt and baking soda until oats are chopped, 5 to 10 pulses. Pulse in butter until crumbly; pulse in cold water until mixture comes together. remove one-third of the oat mixture for topping; toss with chopped-almonds.
Assembly: Press remaining pat mixture into parchment paper-lined 13- x 9-inch (3.5 L) cake pan to make crust; spread filling over crust. Sprinkle topping over filling, pressing lightly.
Bake in 350°F (180°C) oven until light golden, 35 to 40 minutes. Let cool in pan on rack before cutting into squares.
Change it up:
Date and Prune Squares: In filling, reduce dates to 1-1/2 cups; add 1-1/2 cups chopped pitted prunes.
Blueberry Squares: Omit Date Filling. In saucepan, bring 5 cups blueberrries and 1 cup granulated sugar to boil; reduce heat and simmer until tender, about 10 minutes. Whisk 1/3 cup orange juice with 3 tbsp cornstarch until smooth; whisk into blueberry mixture and boil, stirring until thickened, about 1 minute. Scrape into bowl; place plastic wrap directly on surface. Refrigerate until chilled, about 2 hours. Assemble and bake as directed. Let cool to room temperature; refrigerate until set before cutting into squares.
Nutritional facts Per square: about
- Sodium 60 mg
- Protein 2 g
- Calories 140.0
- Total fat 5 g
- Potassium 164 mg
- Cholesterol 10 mg
- Saturated fat 3 g
- Total carbohydrate 23 g
%RDI
- Iron 6.0
- Folate 5.0
- Calcium 2.0
- Vitamin A 4.0
