Chocolate-Date Cookie Bars

Recipe by: MsJoelBoxer Uploaded by Drimble Wedge

A few people in my family have low sugar tolerance (either from diabetes or gastric bypass). This is a pretty low-sugar cookie I make during the holidays that everyone really enjoys.

Ingredients

For the cookie base

• 1/2 cup rolled oats
• 1/2 cup mixed nuts, ground to a coarse meal by pulsing in a food processor. (I used a mix of macadamia, cashew, almond, and Brazil nuts.)
• 1/4 cup 10-grain hot cereal or cornmeal, dry.
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp. baking soda
• Pinch salt
• 2 tbsp. raw honey or agave (I really like buckwheat honey in this, but anything will work.)
• 1 medium egg
• 2 tbsp. natural peanut butter

For the filling

• 1/2 cup Medjool dates, pitted and chopped
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp. almond extract
• 1 heaping tbsp. dutch process cocoa powder
• 1/2 oz. 70% dark chocolate, chopped.

For the topping

• 1 tbsp. shredded, unsweetened coconut
• 1/2 oz. mixed nuts, roughly chopped. (If you would like the recipe to be lower-fat, you can skip this and use some lightly toasted seeds, rolled oats, or cereal.)

Method

Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F.

In a small saucepan, combine the dates, extracts, and water over medium heat. Bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally until thickened. Use a potato masher or immersion blender to create a more even consistency. Stir in the cocoa and dark chocolate and set the mixture aside to cool.

In the bowl of a food processor, combine the oats, ground nuts, cereal, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Slowly drizzle in the honey while pulsing occasionally to disperse evenly.

In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and peanut butter, then add them to the food processor while pulsing occasionally until a sticky dough is formed.

Grease a 9×5 loaf pan and press the cookie dough into the bottom to create an even crust. Next, layer on the chocolate-date paste, and then top with the chopped nuts and shredded unsweetened coconut.

Bake for 20 minutes and cool completely before cutting into bars.