Chess Bars

This recipe originally came on a recipe card as part of Taako’s Correspondence School of Wizardy, Cantrips & Other Magicks, which claims the recipe to be from Taako’s Super Secret Recipes vol. II. As with most recipes I’ve gathered, I’ve modified this one slightly to fit my tastes and baking style.

Cake Layer

• 1½ cups of pitted dates, tightly packed
• ½ cup of plant-based butter
• 3 large eggs
• 1 cup of unsweetened vanilla almond milk
• 2 cups of unbleached white flour
• 2½ teaspoons of baking powder
• A sprinkle of sea salt

Cream Cheese Layer

• 1 cup of plant-based cream cheese
• 2 large eggs
• 4 cups of powdered coconut sugar
• A sprinkle of sea salt

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 °F (180 °C).
2. Blend the dates, butter, 3 eggs, and milk until emulsified.
3. Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together.
4. Add the blend mixture to the dry ingredients and mix until well combined.
5. Pour the cake batter into a 9-inch by 13-inch cake pan.
6. In a separate bowl, beat the cream cheese, 2 eggs, sugar, and salt until creamy.
7. Pour the cream cheese mixture over the cake batter.
8. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out dry.

Notes

The original recipe asked for a yellow box cake, which I think is a golden box cake in Canada. I have no opposition to box cake, but I wanted to try this with my usual baking substitutions.