Christmas in July - Food For The Gods

It's only July and now we are talking about Christmas already? Psssshaw!


If you live in the Philippines, you would certainly know it won't be Christmas until you receive the proverbial fruitcake or its more delicious cousin- food for the gods


What is food for the gods anyway? It is actually a hyped up word for date-nut bars.


If you're like me, I prefer food for the gods to a traditional fruitcake. The first time it was introduced to me was when we bought TANGERINE TREE- food for the gods. They were packed in vacuum sealed foils and were deliciously moist. I have tried others but they pale in comparison to the moistness of the tangerine tree version.


I found the holy grail of food for the gods recipes (well, in my opinion anyway). I was thinking of keeping this MY secret but my generosity got the better of me so here is the recipe.


YOU'LL NEED:
1 1/4 cup sifted all purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup dates pitted chopped
3/4 cup butter
3/4 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 cup chopped walnut


preheat oven to 180C grease a 9x13" pan


combine first 4 ingredients ( the dry ones)


cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy (be patient- about 3-4 minutes). add eggs 1 at a time. beat well. reduce speed and add flour slowly.

add dates and nuts (make sure the dates don't have seeds anymore and are chopped small. I made some in my first batch which were cut too large and it was  very chunky to eat. (hahaha).

pour in pan and spread evenly. Don't worry if it looks thin, the bars will still rise. Bake 10 minutes at 180c and then lower heat to 150C and bake for another 30-40 minuted till done.

cool in rack for 20 minutes and then viola!!!

You can pack these in aluminum foil to make them keep their moisture. I tried making these with apricots once... but it wasn't as good as with only dates. The apricots were kind of sour to the taste and countered with the overall taste of the bars.


My husband tasted these and commented that I count make some for Christmas giveaways. So if any of my friends get these as gifts for Christmas.. you'll know how to make them yourselves the next time.


By the way, you can be creative in packaging if you plan to give these as gifts. You can buy gift boxes and colored foil in Chocolate lovers (they have branches in Quezon Avenue and P  Tuason) some people know some more suppliers in Quiapo but I haven't tried going. If anyone has suggestions... pls comment on this blog!


Enjoy and I hope you try this. (My husband said it is similar to the Tangerine Tree version)
If you have other suggestions on how to improve our recipes.. we are open to comments.