Easy Date Squares Recipe

This easy-peasy, no-bake date square recipe is simply put, delicious!

These are not like the old-fashioned date squares with a date filling and two crumbly oatmeal layers that most people are familiar with. No, these date squares are rather unique.

They are luxuriously buttery with a toffee-like flavour and a lovely crunchy texture from the pieces of biscuit.

You will need zero baking skills, one pan and 20 minutes of your time. They're also far easier and quicker to make than traditional date squares.

They also go by "date bars" or "date slices" - it simply depends on the shape they're cut.

If you love dates, also try this luxurious date balls recipe, ideal for Christmas snacks or gifts. For other easy no-bake recipes have a look at these velvety rum truffles with ginger, peanut brittle or this easy coconut ice with condensed milk recipe.

What exactly are dates?

Dates are simply wonderful gifts, straight from Mother Nature herself. It's like toffees growing on trees!

They are the fruits of date palm trees (yes, it is a specific type), native to the Middle East and North Africa. These days, date palms are grown anywhere in the world with a warm, dry climate, making them far more accessible to the rest of the globe.

The fruits grow in big clusters and are hand-harvested by people who definitely cannot afford to have any issues with vertigo – these palms are extremely high!

There are male and female trees, but birds and bees are not hugely attracted to the fruit, so the female trees need to be pollinated by hand.

A collection of date palms is called a "date garden" or a "date grove".

Key ingredients and substitutions

Butter

Salted or unsalted butter will work. The variation in saltiness is not significant once all the ingredients have been combined.

Pitted dates

You will need plain old regular, pitted dates usually found in the baking aisle of your supermarket. No need to splash out on expensive Medjool dates.

Just to clarify, in the average supermarket, you may find two types of dates - Medjool dates and Deglet Moor (baking aisle dates).

Medjool dates are usually larger, plumper and also far more expensive. You will likely see them in the fresh fruit aisle. These expensive dates will be wasted in this recipe because we are cooking the dates to a near pulp with some butter. So, save your pennies!

Deglet Noor are the smaller, firmer and cheaper dates that you would generally find in the baking aisle or with the dried fruit. We've never seen them packaged as 'Deglet Noor' dates, they're usually just 'dates'. These are the dates you want.

Sugar

Just regular white, granulated sugar is needed, but you can replace this with white caster sugar.

Top tip: You can make your own castor sugar very easily by just whizzing normal granulated sugar in a food processor. The consistency needs to be somewhere between granulated sugar and icing sugar.

We would advise against using brown sugar, it will make the mixture too heavy and too dark.

Digestive biscuits

Can be replaced with any plain biscuits like Graham crackers (USA), Marie biscuits (South Africa), Rich Tea biscuits (UK) or even Scottish shortbreads.

Equipment needed

• A medium saucepan.

• A square baking pan of 20cm x 20cm (8" x 8").

• Parchment paper.

• A wooden spoon or spatula.

• A cutting board and a sharp knife.

How to make date squares: Step-by-step

1. Line a 20cm x 20cm (8" x 8") baking tin with parchment paper, leaving a slight overhang.
   
   The overhang will make it easier to lift the block of date squares from the tin once it's set.

2. Place the butter in a large saucepan and gently melt it over medium heat.

3. Once the butter has melted, add the chopped dates to the pan.

4. Using a spatula, stir the mixture until the dates soften and begin to break up. This process typically takes around 5 minutes.
   
   You can help this process by gently 'squishing' the dates with a spatula as you stir. Make sure to scrape the bottom of the pan throughout. If it seems like there's an excess of liquid butter at this stage, don't worry, it will get fully incorporated later in the process.

5. Once done, take the mixture off the heat and let it cool for around 10 minutes.
   
   You don't have to wait for it to cool down to room temperature, just make sure it's not intensely hot. This is to avoid the egg from scrambling once we add it in.

6. Whisk the egg together with the sugar and salt in a small bowl.

7. Add the egg mixture to the dates and immediately stir it in, making sure to incorporate it quickly.

8. Put the saucepan back on medium-low heat and gently warm the mixture for 2-3 minutes to cook the egg.
   
   Keep moving the mixture and fold as much of the butter into the dates as possible, then, remove it from the heat.

9. In a large bowl, break the biscuits into small pieces by hand. Don't crush it too finely, you want some larger chunks.

10. Add the warm date mixture to the crushed biscuits.

11. Using a sturdy, large spoon, like a serving spoon, combine the date mixture with the crushed biscuits.

12. Scoop the mixture into the prepared, square pan.

13. Using your sturdy spoon, push the mixture into all the corners and level the top with the back of the spoon.

14. Place the pan of date squares in the fridge for a minimum of 3 hours to set.

15. Lift the whole slab out of the tin and transfer it onto a cutting board. Slice it into individual squares.

16. Optional: You can sprinkle the squares with desiccated coconut. It goes really well with the dates!

Vegan date squares

Replace the butter with vegan butter, the egg with a quarter cup of apple sauce and the digestives with vegan-friendly, plain biscuits.

Storage

The date squares will last well for 2 weeks when stored in an airtight container or sealed with plastic wrap.

These date squares mature and improve over time, becoming more delicious on the next day after baking and in the following days.

Can you freeze date squares?

Yes, you can. Place a sheet of baking paper between each layer of squares and freeze for up to 3 months. You can layer them in a lidded box, or inside a freezer bag.

To defrost, simply remove them from the freezer a few hours before you would like to enjoy them.