Date Squares - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1 cup all-purpose flour, sifted
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter
1 1/2 cups rolled oats
3 cups pitted dates
1 1/2 cups water
1 1/2 cups white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preparation

Mix and sift flour, salt, baking soda and baking powder. Stir in brown sugar. Work in butter with fingertips until well blended. Lightly stir in rolled oats.
Press half of the mixture into bottom of a buttered 11 x 7 x 1 1/2 inch baking pan.
Simmer dates, water and sugar in a saucepan about 35 minutes or until mixture thickens. Stir occasionally. Add vanilla.
Pour over mixture in baking pan. Sprinkle with remaining curmb mixture. Bake in oven at 300 f for 30 minutes. Cool. Cut into squares. Makes forty 1 1/2 inch squares.
NOTE: 1 1/4 hours time allocated includes prep time.