Recipe: Lemon-Frosted Fruit Bars (date-nut bars, Betty Crocker recipe, 1940's)

LEMON-FROSTED FRUIT BARS

"You'll make a hit with these extra-special, soft, molasses-flavored cookies, containing dates and nuts. They're easy and quick to make, as batter is spread in a sheet in a cake pan and baked then cut into individual bars later."

1 egg yolk
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup molasses
1/2 cup sour cream (25% butter fat)
1 1/2 cups sifted flour
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped
1/2 cup or 1/4 lb. pitted dates, cut up
Lemon Icing (recipe follows)

Blend together in mixing bowl the egg yolk, brown sugar, and molasses. Mix well. Blend in sour cream.

Sift flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and ginger together, and blend into egg yolk mixture. Now blend in nuts and dates. Spread in a lightly greased oblong pan (8 1/4 by 12 1/4 inches).

Bake 15 minutes in a hot oven (400 degrees ). As soon as removed from the oven, cut into bars (about 1 by 2 inches), leaving them in pan to cool.

When cool, spread Lemon Icing over the whole sheet of bars. Then, while icing is still soft but not "runny", remove bars from the pan with a broad spatula. (The icing will become stiff, with a dry finish, as it stands.)

LEMON ICING

1 egg white (pasteurized)
1 cup confectioner's sugar
Dash of salt
1/4 tsp. lemon extract

Beat egg white until stiff but not dry. Gradually add confectioner's sugar, salt and lemon extract, continuing beating until smooth and glossy. (This icing should be "runny" when spread on cookies. Do not add more sugar to it to make it thicker. Icing on cookies stiffens as it stands and has a nice smooth dry finish over top.)

Makes 48 bars
From: Faith's Collection at Recipelink.com
Source: Vintage recipe pamphlet, Gold Medal Flour, 1940's