New Baby Meal Grand Finale

The last two days I’ve been sharing the run down of a new baby meal we shared with a family last week. The enchiladas, tropical fruit salad and black bean and corn salsa were the meal, but every good meal needs a dessert. Since we’re smack dab in the middle of Lent, I know some families, including ours, give up dessert or chocolate, so I wanted something sweet, but not too sweet to end the meal. This Oatmeal Cookie Bar recipe is sweet, but also healthful, full of whole grains and fruit. I also replaced a little more than a third of the butter with applesauce without affecting the texture and taste of the bar base. Give these a try. Use your food processor and these come together quicker than you can say “Oatmeal Cookie Bar.” Okay, maybe not quite that quick, but they are pretty darn quick. Oatmeal Cookie Bars 1 ½ cups old-fashioned rolled oats 1 cup whole wheat flour (you can use white flour too) ½ cup brown sugar 5 tablespoons butter, cut into several pieces ¼ cup applesauce ½ teaspoon cinnamon 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg ¼ teaspoon baking soda ¼ teaspoon salt 1 ¼ cup all-fruit blackberry (or any fruit you like) jam Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a food processor, add the oats, flour, sugar, butter, applesauce, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda and salt. Pulse until the mixture is crumbly and the butter is no longer in large clumps, but well combined. Press 2 cups of the mixture in the bottom of a greased 9 x 13 pan. Top with jam. Sprinkle the remaining mixture on top. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the oat mixture is slightly brown. Cool well before cutting. Makes 24 pieces. SPC