No-bake Date Almond Bars

Our weather quickly got warm in the Seattle area. I don’t know when we typically bring out the air conditioner, but we had to put it into action this week. Hopefully we will only have a couple of days that are so hot, as I really prefer the fresh air that the fan brings in. It’s been so warm, so there was no other choice. We’re trying to get our kitties to understand that our bedroom is cooler, but I don’t think they are all convinced.

This is a no-bake bar, which they call a slice. Calling the recipe a slice immediately tells me that this is not an American recipe. I did some more research and this recipe is from an Australian blogger. That makes sense, as a have a “Biscuits and Slices” cookbook that is also from Australia. Occasionally international recipes have ingredients that are too hard to find, but that isn’t the case. Sweetened condensed milk is easy to find, you just don’t use the entire can. I used Digestive biscuits (which Americans would call cookies) as they are classic. You can use any plain sweet cookie that you can find. I suppose shortbread would even work, but that would make these bars very rich.

I have the ingredients here in metric weights, which is honestly what I use most frequently. It boils down to about 1 cup of almonds and ¾ cup of chopped dates. My husband seemed to be pleased that there was some of the biscuits left. The original recipe says that these take about 10 minutes to make, but don’t believe that! It takes some time to chop the almonds and the dates are so sticky. They are quick though, if you don’t count the time for refrigeration. I made mine a day in advance and then just cut them when I needed them. These bars are excellent, and surprisingly have a very strong chocolate flavor. Although these are a no-bake, I can’t recommend them enough.

No-bake Date Almond Bars

130 grams roasted almonds

100 grams pitted dates

250 grams plain sweet cookies/biscuits

220 grams sweetened condensed milk

2 tablespoons golden syrup/honey

125 grams butter

250 grams chopped dark chocolate

2 tablespoons shortening

Line a 9” square pan with foil and spray the foil with nonstick cooking spray.

Roughly chop the almonds and dates and add to a large mixer bowl. Finely crush the cookies and add to the mixer bowl. In a medium bowl combine the sweetened condensed milk, golden syrup, and the butter. Microwave in 30 second increments, stirring frequently, until the mixture is smooth. Pour the sweetened condensed milk mixture into the large mixer bowl.

Mix on low until combined. Spread the mixture into the prepared pan. Refrigerate for one hour.

After an hour, make the topping: in a medium bowl combine the dark chocolate and shortening. Microwave in 30 second increments, stirring frequently, until the mixture is smooth. Top the cooled bars with the chocolate and smooth the top. Allow the chocolate to set before cutting into bars.

Recipe from Bake, Play, Smile