I have been staring a box of raspberry bars in my pantry for sometime now thinking about when I should make them. I liked the idea of making raspberry bars when I saw them in the grocery store but for some reason I have not been able to motivate myself to bake them. I think it is because they are just sitting in a box. Since I have started experimenting with baking I like the idea of making things from scratch rather than from a box. Don’t get me wrong. I would still use a boxed cake mix in a minute instead of making it from scratch. I have not graduated to that level of baking yet. However, the thought of making a box of raspberry bars no longer intrigued me once I got it home.
Double Decker Oatmeal Bars popped into my mind while watching the Pioneer Women one morning. She made a very simple strawberry oatmeal bar dessert that I figured even I could make. I decided I wanted to try making two layers of oatmeal bars so I could experiment with using complimentary flavors. I liked the idea of apricots and raspberries or orange and blueberry preserves.
The best thing about making this simple but yummy dessert is that you can prepare it with any flavor you like. Be adventurous. Make this recipe into your own!
Double Decker Oatmeal Bars
Ingredients:
1 ½ cup of oats
1 ½ cups flour
1 cup brown sugar
½ cup ground pecans
2 sticks of cold butter cubed
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
1 jar raspberry or blueberry preserves
1 jar apricot preserves
cooking spray
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray an 8 inch square baking dish with cooking spray.
Place dry ingredients in a large bowl. Add butter and cut into dry ingredients until well blended. Press ¼ of oat mixture in the bottom of the baking dish. Spread apricot jam over the bottom layer of oats. Top with more oat mixture and gently spread out over preserves. Add a layer of the raspberry preserves and top with remaining oat mixture and gently spread over preserves. Bake for 30 – 40 minutes. Let cool then cut into squares.
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