Raw Strawberry Date Bars

These Raw Strawberry Dates come together in a jiffy, but grab a napkin—they’re very sticky! Dates, macadamia nuts and oats are pulsed in a food processor to form a sweet paste that is then pressed into a loaf pan and topped with fresh strawberries. Though there is no sugar added, the dates and strawberries are incredibly sweet in themselves, making these bars ideal for dessert.

Think of these Raw Strawberry Date Bars as a homemade Lärabar, the date-packed energy bars that have only 2-9 ingredients, all of which are actually pronounceable. I like the Cherry Pie Lärabar and think it would be fun to pattern my next batch of raw date bars after them. I would use dried cherries, chocolate and almonds and top them with coconut. What combo would you choose?

Recipe from Whole Living magazine (August 2011, p 101) under the alias “Strawberry Oat Bars.”

Serves 6 (I like to nibble on these in half- or quarter-servings)

Note:  After eating a few of the bars, I found that a few tablespoons of crushed pistachios sprinkled over the top added a salty dimension that nicely rounded out the sweetness of the bars.

Ingredients

1½ cups pitted dates
¼ cup raw macadamia nuts
2 Tablespoons old-fashioned rolled oats
Pinch sea salt
1 cup (or more!) strawberries, hulled and thinly sliced
2 Tablespoons salted pistachios, crushed

Make the Raw Strawberry Date Bars

1. Pulse dates, nuts, oats and salt in a food processor until combined. You may need to stir the mixture occasionally so that it chops the dates and nuts fairly evenly.
2. Press the date mixture into the bottom of a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan lined with parchment paper.
3. Mash half the strawberries and spread on top of date mixture. Top with remaining strawberries and sprinkle with pistachios. Slice into rectangles.