Date Crumb Bake

I am a big fan of slices. I find them very practical and often terribly yummy. I also love the fact that they do not make me feel very guilty for eating them - this is due to their size. Obviously at the time of cutting I can make them look even smaller and the guilt would be even less. This recipe caught my eye because of the dates and the fact that they would be used in pulp form. I am a big fan of creamy and crumbly. I have pretty much stuck to the original recipe apart from the flour which I decided to do half wholemeal. I also used a basic muesli mix as opposed to only oats. I thought that it would have been more interesting. I'm glad I made that call.

125g butter, plus extra for greasing

250g dried ready-to-eat dates, chopped

125g self-raising flour

125g wholemeal self-raising flour

250g dark muscovado sugar, sifted

2 tbsp oats

½ tsp ground cinnamon

1 egg lightly beaten

Pre-heat the oven to 180oC/fan 160oC/gas 4. Grease a non-stick baking tin (about 17.5 cm x 27 cm x 4 cm deep).

Pour 6 tablespoons of boiling water over the dates. Leave for 5 minutes to soften then whizz in a food processor or blender to a rough paste.

Sift the flour and sugar into a large bowl, add the butter, and rub in until just crumb-like. Tip half the mixture into another bowl and stir in the oats. Rub the remaining mixture until the crumbs are very fine, then stir in the cinnamon and egg to get a moist dough. Press this evenly into the base of the tin.

Spread the date mixture over the base, then sprinkle over the oaty crumb mixture, pressing down lightly. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until the topping is golden. Cool in the tin and cut into 21 squares to serve.