Date and Nut Bars

This is another recipe from my Grandmother Hope, copied exactly as she wrote it out in script with a fountain pen in her cloth-bound recipe book. Bracketed comments are mine. She seldom gave directions. I cream the eggs, sugar and butter then combine with the dry ingredients, dates (rolled in a bit of the flour) and nuts. While she rolled the bars in confectioner's sugar, I use a shaker and sprinkle the sugar over the top right after removing pan from the oven.

January 2012:  I made this recipe for the first time in years this past Christmas.  When I went to get the 7" x 11" pan I remembered taking it to the transfer station a few years ago when I was purging my cabinets of decrepit aluminum. Ummm... so used the 8" x 8" glass pan and cooked for 30 minutes, until a small skewer inserted in the middle came out clean.  Not enough (think nuts near the top cleaned the skewer). The middle area was not fully cooked. Ed liked them anyway, so I tried them again this week and cooked for 35 minutes. Again, they appeared cooked but a small area in the very middle was a bit soggy.  The bars cut well, however, and seemed to have a pretty good texture after cooling on the rack.


“2 eggs [or 1/2 c"egg product"]
1 cup sugar
butter 'size of walnut’ [I uses 1 1/2 T]
1 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
salt [I omit]
½ tsp cinnamon
vanilla [I use 1 t]
1 cup dates, cut fine
½ cup nuts [chopped]
[Confectioner sugar]


Bake in pan 7” x 11” at about 325 degrees for 20 –25 minutes. Cut as soon as out of oven. Pieces while warm may be rolled in conf. sugar.”





Reviewed 5/14/17