Date And Almond Bars From The Fat Witch Recipes

DATE AND ALMOND BARS FROM THE FAT WITCH

Steps:

• grease a 9 x 9" baking pan with butter. Dust with flour and tap out the excess. Preheat the oven to 350°. To make the filling, bring the dates, orange juice, and sugar to a boil in a medium pan over high heat. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for three minutes, stirring occasionally. The mixture should be thick. Remove from the heat, stir in the almonds and set aside.
• To make the batter, measure and then sift the flour into a large bowl. Stir in the oats, brown sugar and salt using a wooden spoon. Add the butter pieces one at a time and mix well. The dough will be crumbly. Finish mixing with your hands until you get a smooth consistency
• press half of the oat mixture evenly into prepared baking pan. Using a spatula, spread the date mixture evenly on top of the oat mixture in the pan. Sprinkle the remaining oat mixture on top of the date mixture and press down lightly with a fork. Don't worry if it is slightly uneven. Bake for 30 minutes until light Brown on top and the edges are browned and pulling away from the sides of the pan.
• Remove from the oven and cool on a rack for one hour. Cut just before serving. Makes 12 to 16 bars

HERMIT BARS FROM THE FAT WITCH

Steps:

• Grease a 9 x 9 inch baking pan with butter. Dust with flour and tap out the excess. Preheat oven to 350.
• Cream the butter and sugar til fluffy and smooth. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, and continue beating as you add the molasses.
• Measure the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, cloves, nutmeg, and salt and sift together into the batter. Mix the batter gently until well mixed and no trace of dry ingredients remains. Stir in the raisins and nuts, if desired, by hand. Spread batter evenly into prepared pan.
• Bake for 22 minutes or til a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean or with only crumbs, not batter, sticking to it. The edges should be starting to pull away from the sides of the pan. Note: I used and 8 x 8 inch pan and had to add about 5 minutes more cooking time, but that's just me. If I would have used a 9 x 9 inch pan, maybe the 22 minutes would have been fine.
• Remove from oven and cool on rack for 1 hour. Cut just before serving. Makes 12 to 16 bars.

CHERRY OATMEAL BARS FROM THE FAT WITCH BAKERY

Steps:

• 1. grease a 9 x 9" baking pan with butter. Dust with flour and tap out the excess. Preheat the oven to 350°. Melt the butter in a small pan over low heat, stirring frequently. Remove from heat and let cool for five minutes. Stir in the vanilla and mix well.
• 2. In a large bowl, mix the oats, flour, sugar, salt, and cinnamon together with a wooden spoon, flattening any lumps. Pour in the melted butter mixture and mix until well incorporated. Stir in the cherries and continue mixing, adding nuts if desired.
• 3. Spread the dough evenly in the bottom of the prepared baking pan, using your hands to Down. Bake for 30 minutes or until the top is Golden Brown and the edges are starting to pull away from the sides of the pan. Remove from the oven and cool on a rack for one hour. Cut just before serving. Makes 12 to 16 bars.