My friend, Lisa, brought these date pecan chocolate bars to book club once and OMG they were pretty wonderful. Technically they are intended for dessert, but honestly there is no reason they wouldn’t be great for breakfast, too. Dates, nuts, dark chocolate. Why not? Frankly, they have a lot more nutrition and a lot less sugar than the standard American breakfast. So, yeh, I would go for it.

Frankly, I would recommend them for absolutely anyone, young and old. A reunion, a picnic, a gathering of neighbors, a special dinner, a treat for kids on movie night. And book club, of course. Any time.

Recipes like this create moments, like moments in time and moments of gratitude. They are a reminder that food is meant to nourish not just the body, but also the heart and soul. And the best of all is when our food does all three at the same time. So thank you, Lisa <3

Date-Pecan Layer

• ½ cup unsalted, natural almond butter
• 1 ½ cups unsalted pecan halves, divided
• 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
• ¼ tsp. salt
• 5-7 (1/2 cup packed) pitted Medjool dates

Chocolate Layer

• ½ cup vegan chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup PLUS 1 Tbsp. natural almond butter, unsalted

Topping

• ¼ cup pecans, chopped

Directions

1. Line 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper and set aside.
2. To prepare the date-pecan layer, add dates and almond butter to a food processor. Blend approx. one min. until sticky and crumbly, like chunks of wet sand or dough. Scrape down the sides of the processor intermittently, as needed, between processing.
3. Add 1 cup pecans, vanilla, and salt to food processor. Blend continuously until pecans are fully incorporated, mixture is soft and crumbly, and holds together when pinched. Add remaining pecans, and pulse a few times until pecans are just barely incorporated, with medium-small pieces of pecan still visible.
4. Pour the contents into the prepared baking pan. Press gently with a spatula, and smooth into an even, packed layer.
5. To prepare the chocolate mixture, add chocolate chips and almond butter (¼ cup plus 1 Tbsp) to top of double boiler, or heat in microwave (use glass or silicon bowl) in 20-sec increments until soft and melting. Stir until smooth.
6. Pour chocolate mixture over date-pecan layer. Smooth into an even layer using a rubber spatula. Sprinkle remaining chopped pecans over the chocolate, and press gently into the chocolate.
7. Freeze for 20-30 minutes. Remove from freezer and slice into 16-20 small pieces.

Thank you to Beaming Baker for a prior version of this recipe.