"Chinese Chews" = Date Walnut Bars
So, the mystery of the name "Chinese Chews" lives on............some people think they were called "Chinese" because dates were "exotic" and dates were hard to find many moons ago.
Sort of makes sense, since there is nothing remotely Asian about this recipe.
Many women remember their mothers or grandmothers making these back during WWII. I have never heard of them, nor tried them (I'm not THAT old!), but I was intrigued by all the bakers making them lately.
If you have 45 minutes (including the baking time), or if you don't like to bake, then these are for you.
They were silly easy and yielded delicious, chewy delights.
And I love dates and nuts, so it was a win win.
Let's just call them:
Date & Walnut Bars: (adapted from Simply Recipes)
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup chopped dates
1 cup chopped walnuts
3 eggs, well-beaten
Confectioners sugar, for topping
I used Medjool dates from Israel, because they are big and luscious and I always have them in the cupboard. Only problem, is you have to pit them and they are a sticky mess.
Combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt with a whisk.
Add in the walnuts and then the dates and mix in with the flour.
Add in the 3 eggs (you don't have to do it one at a time as the recipe says..........some of the commenters say they come out better when you just add them all in at once).
The batter will be nice and sticky.
The recipe calls for an 8" x 10" pan, and really, who has that?
Mine is close, so I used that, give or take an inch.
Recipe says: Butter AND flour the pan, or the bars will definitely stick.
Stacey says: Line the pan with parchment paper and nothing sticks. Ever. Promise.
Spread the batter into the prepared pan with a rubber spatula.
Bake at 300F for 30 minutes, the top should be nice and golden.
Let cool in the pan about 15 minutes before slicing.
Dust with confectioner's sugar and eat.
Yum.
Ancient Chinese Secret.
Comments
They are delicious.
Bebe
http://www.lindystoast.com/2005/07/_the_hunt_for_c.html
Her and her mother's quest for the recipe makes interesting reading. Well worth the download and a little time.
Bebe
Just noticed a critical difference between your adapted recipe and the one in the link I posted above - a pound (!) of butter! (No time to do a complete comparison, so there may be other differences as well.)
Yours has to be good. Just another version, as Simply Recipes notes in the text accompanying their recipe.
Bebe
parchment nothing sticks ever
promise" gave me a laugh. I've picked
up a number of tips from your cooking
style and how you adapt recipes to
ingredients in your cupboard when
necessary.