User post: My First Date with Date Bars
Growing up in New York I always assumed everyone I saw on the streets grew up here too. When I learned that the majority of grown-ups had moved to my city from other places I was completely surprised. That kind of myopia informs a lot of New Yorkers.
There's the swagger that comes from living in "the city that never sleeps," believing we're at the center of the universe. But that thinking is also a small mindedness. Living in the same place for an entire lifetime, even the biggest city in the world, is in many ways as provincial as spending your life in Small Town, USA. It's important to remember it takes more than a Big Apple to make a fruit salad.
A few weeks ago I was reminded of my limited appreciation of the rest of the country when the New York Times ran a piece on the publication of The Sunset Cookbook: a compendium of recipes from the 102 year old Sunset magazine, a fixture in America's western living rooms. I remember seeing the magazine fanned out on someone's coffee table although I can't think of whose. Maybe an aunt or uncle in California? Or am I conflating it with Highlights for Children at my dentist's office? Anyway, I know I've seen it and have always been curious about it.
One of the things that surprised me the most about the article was just how long western food has had its own character-again, a completely New York or eastern point of view. Among other things, the climate and demographic are totally different and specific so why should I be surprised? Did you know that in 1922 the magazine published a recipe for enchiladas? Although it makes complete sense that Mexican flavors would impact the cuisine of border states I don't think I realized they had infiltrated the mainstream back when women bobbed their hair and New Yorkers were suffering through jellied consommés.
And then the weirdest thing happened. I went grocery shopping and all I saw were dates. They were everywhere: dates on stems outside, dates with pits in plastic containers piled near the door, cardboard boxes of pitted dates stacked under the apples, and jumbo dates ready to be scooped in the bulk section. This was a sign from the date god.
A little surfing on epicurious.com and I came upon "Classic Date Bars." Wait a minute, I've never even heard of a date bar and they are considered a "classic?" What is going on here? Obviously I had to make this supposed classic if I wanted to continue to call myself a baker. They are super easy, nutty and toasty, both soft and chewy, with a nice contrast between the hint of cinnamon in the crumbly crust and the sweet, sticky fruity center. And then I noticed something in the online reviews; of the 54 comments only two were from New York, and both had tweaked the recipe so much they clearly had no nostalgic attachment to this supposedly ubiquitous treat. So maybe this was a regional thing. Maybe I did need to look outside of New York to open my eyes to the rest of the country and, for once, a good date.
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My First Date with Date Bars
adapted from Bon Appétit, February 2004
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Ingredients
1 cup water
1/2 cup orange juice
1 1/2 cups chopped pitted dates
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup (packed) dark brown sugar
1 cup old-fashioned oats
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, diced, room temperature
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
Directions
Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter 8x8-inch metal baking pan. Bring water and orange juice to simmer in medium saucepan. Add dates; simmer until very soft and thick, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes. Cool to room temperature. Stir in vanilla.
Combine flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt in food processor and pulse to mix. Add butter and pulse until moist clumps form. Add oatmeal and pulse on and off until oats are evenly incorporated. Press half of oat mixture evenly over bottom of prepared pan.
Spread date mixture over oat mixture. Sprinkle with remaining oat mixture and chopped walnuts if using, gently to adhere. Bake until brown at edges and golden brown and set in center, about 40 minutes. Cool completely in pan on rack. Cut into bars and serve.
Yield: 16 bars
