These sweet Oatmeal Date Bars are a perfect afternoon treat with tea or coffee. The oatmeal crust is sweetened with honey; the rich and creamy date filling is finished with an oatmeal crumble topping!
So my phone is slowly but surely giving up on me. Which totally sucks! There are parts of the touch screen that have become completely unresponsive. I am constantly flipping between portrait and landscape mode, because there are certain letters I am unable to type depending on screen orientation.
Ahh... It almost makes me miss the good old days of phones with actual buttons.
There irony of it all is, that my phone is failing just as we have arrived in Thailand. Back in the day (about 1-½ years ago) we bought this specific model of phone for me, because it comes unlocked by default. We knew back then that we wanted to travel and potentially relocate abroad, so an unlocked phone would be super handy to just pop in local SIM cards wherever we go.
Well, finally this time of using a foreign SIM has come and some mere 4 weeks later my phone seems unusable. So for 1.5 years I made due with a sub-par phone (I was forever complaining how crappy the camera on it was) only to have it fail when its actually was needed.
Side Story: Getting A New Phone
For my new phone, I think I'll definitely go with an iPhone again. Or any phone with similar camera quality (suggestions?). I want to get back on Instagram with snapshots from my phone, that I love! Most of the pictures I currently share are taken with my DSLR and then painstakingly transferred.
No more of this. I doubt that I'll go with the newest iPhone 6 though. Being in Thailand, prepaid plans are the most cost-effective. So no contracts that will majorly discount the device cost. I am just not ready to shell out close to a grand for a phone. Not with a 1-year-old who regularly snatches it and tests its sound making abilities by slamming it on our coffee table.
Also, I managed to crack 2 iPhone screens pre-baby (and 2 iPad screens post-baby). Funnily enough, despite many drops on my part and coffee table slammings by Olivia, the screen on my old (now failing) phone is still perfect. We'll have to see what my options are for getting maybe an iPhone 5 (C or S) here. I'll let you know. Or you may notice a sudden increase of snapshots shared on Instagram 😉
Oatmeal Date Bars Are a Cinch to Make
Enough phone talk. Food talk is just so much more uplifting!
I made these Oatmeal Date Bars a looong time ago. Right when I first got into making desserts without refined sugar. Accordingly, these date bars are sweetened with dates (duh!) and honey only.
Initially I had some other plans with this recipe, and then it went to slumber in my drafts folder. But am I ever glad to have woken these treats from their sleep for today's post.
The date squares are quite simple to make. The same mixture that makes the oatmeal crust is also used as crumb topping over the date filling. The layers of crunchy, creamy and crumbly make for a fantastic texture contrast. I loved having one of those oatmeal date squares with tea as an afternoon treat (pssst...I may also have had them for breakfast).
Recipe
Oatmeal Date Bars
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1 cup rolled oats
- ½ cup coconut dessicated & unsweetened
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup butter softened
- ½ cup honey
Filling:
- 12 ounces dates pitted
- 1 cup water
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
Instructions
- To prepare the filling place pitted dates and water in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and stirring occasionally cook down to a thick and fairly smooth consistency. Stir in lemon juice and set aside.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Whisk together flour, oats, coconut, baking powder and salt. Add softened butter and honey stir to combine. Press about half of the mixture into the bottom of an 8-inch square baking dish. Bake for about 10 minutes to set.
- Spread date filling over bottom crust and crumble the remaining batter over top. Bake for another 15-20 minutes until the crumb topping turns golden-brown.
- Let the date bars cool down to room temperature on the counter, then cover and transfer to the fridge for a minimum of 2 hours before cutting and serving.
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Other Dessert Bars You Can Make
Yummy! Dessert bars! Let's keep them coming!
Random Questions
The calorie content can vary based on the specific ingredients and quantities used. Typically, oatmeal date bars are moderately calorific due to the natural sweetness from dates and honey, providing energy and nutrients. A single bar can range from 150 to 250 calories, depending on the recipe and portion size.
Crumbly texture may result from a lack of sufficient binding ingredients or over-baking. Ensuring the right balance of moist ingredients such as dates and honey can help enhance the cohesion of the oatmeal mixture, resulting in a firmer texture.
Dates can be combined with various ingredients, including nuts, oats, honey, and other dried fruits, to create a range of delicious and nutritious treats. Incorporating ingredients like almonds, cashews, or other dried fruits can enhance the flavor and texture of date-based recipes.
Colleen L.
I’d been looking for a good date bar ever since our local bakery went out of business. Their bars were unlike any I’d ever had before, and I think it was partly due to the addition of coconut. When I saw your recipe, I knew I had to try it. I’m glad I did, because these date bars are delicious and so easy to make.
For my own personal preference, I’m thinking of adding chopped walnuts to the topping the next time I make them.
Thanks for sharing. It’s definitely a keeper.
Jennifer @ Leelalicious
Thank you for your lovely review, Colleen! I'm sure the addition of walnuts would be wonderful.
Regina
Hi Joe, I think you may be fine with just omitting the dessicated coconut or just replace with a few more oats or flour
Joe
Is there a substitute for coconut?