Did you know that in 2027 it will be the International Year of the Date Palm?

This recipe is arguably a ‘healthier’ treat than say a chocolate peanut butter brownie (yes, I linked it for you)! This recipe is for delicious date squares that are less sweet than most traditional recipes as you can opt out of using refined sugar.

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In many countries particularly in Africa and the Middle East, the date palm, and the actual dates themselves are massively important as both income generating, and as a prime food source. The world’s largest date producer is Egypt followed by Saudi Arabia. In the US the big date farms are predominantly in the Coachella valley, California as well as Arizona, Florida, Nevada, Texas and even Utah.

I was curious where countries across the globe sourced their dates. After some surface level poking around, I found some interesting results: (Source: WITS - Worldbank.org)

The United States imports most of its dates from Mexico, Tunisia, Israel, Algeria and Saudi Arabia. They also grow a substantial amount domestically.

Canada imports most of its dates from the US (mostly California) followed by Israel, Tunisia, Iran, Algeria, China and Saudi Arabia.

Australia imports most of its dates from Israel, Iran, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, United States. There is also local production in Central Australia.

The EU imports most of its dates from Tunisia and Algeria.

Medjool dates are the most consumed date followed by Deglet Noor. Medjool are known as the ‘king of dates’ as they are the sweetest, soft and large in size. Medjool are one of the more expensive variety of dates as they must be harvested when they are at their peak ripeness.

There are thousands of different date varieties. The most expensive dates in the world are produced in Saudi Arabia, they are called Ajwa dates.

For this recipe, I recommend the readily available Medjool date, if you use the Deglet noor you may need to add a little bit of water to achieve a smooth paste (the filling in the date square). Medjool are also slightly sweeter than the Deglet noor, do use whatever date variety you have handy, the recipe will be just as delicious.

This recipe uses the dates natural sugars as for sweetness. However, I have also included an added sugar option for the oat layer if you are in the mood for a sweeter treat.

Recipe

Date squares

Date layer

1 3/4 cups (about 250 g) soft dates with the pits removed - Medjool dates are the variety I use, as my local grocery stores seem to stock this variety exclusively.

1 Tbsp lemon juice

4-6 tbsp water

Pinch of salt

Oat layer

3/4 cup (90 g) all purpose flour

3/4 cup (90 g) brown sugar (optional, feel free to leave it out)

1 cup (75 g) oats - I use the quick, rolled oats (I also use steel cut) found with breakfast cereals

1/4 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp cardamom (optional but very nice)

small pinch of salt

1/2 cup (120 ml) tahini OR option to use softened butter

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350 F or 180C.

2. In a large bowl, mix the the dry oat layer ingredients until well combined.

3. Add the tahini or softened butter (not both) and mix well. Set aside.

4. To make the date mixture. In a small pot add the pitted dates, water and salt. Over medium heat stir until the dates have softened. Using the back of a wooden spoon, mash up the dates until they are quite smooth and you have a paste-like texture. Remove from the heat, add the lemon juice. Stir to combine well.

5. Press 2/3 of the oat mixture firmly into a parchment lined or greased loaf tin, then spread the date paste on top. I used a 9 x 5 (8 cup) metal loaf tin. I happened to grease my pan (I used butter) this time but, the photos below show a great TIP* for using parchment paper from a previous coffee cake post.

*TIP: Using parchment, measure the outer dimensions of the pan, and cut a piece of paper approximately that size. Then, using scissors, cut a 45 degree slit in each corner. These slits needs to be long enough so they naturally create a corner once hitting the bottom of the pan. Simply press the cut parchment into the the pan. If you need to cut a deeper cut to reach the bottom, just do so.

4. Crumble the remaining 1/3 of the oat mixture evenly over the date layer to create the oat topping.

5. Bake for 20-25 minutes, then allow to cool completely before slicing.

6. Store in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.

Tip jar - Buy me a coffee

In the coming weeks, I will be including a section at the bottom of the post with several suggestions for other Substacks, and authors that I have been enjoying reading. Keep a look out!

Serve and enjoy!