Oatmeal Cookie Bars
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Ingredients
- 10 tbsp/150ml neutral oil canola, sunflower, vegetable
- 1 ¼ cups/255g light brown sugar
- 1/2 cup/120ml unsweetened applesauce
- 1 tsp/5ml vanilla extract
- 1 tsp/2g pumpkin pie or apple pie spice blend
- ½ tsp/3g salt
- 2 cups/240g oat flour
- 1 tsp/5g baking soda
- 1 ½ cups/180g chopped pecans
- 2 ½ cups/225g rolled oats
- ¾ cup/115g dried cranberries
Method
- Preheat oven to 350°F/175C. Line a 9” x 13”/ 23cm x 33cm baking pan with parchment (or grease well).
- In a large bowl, combine oil, sugar, and applesauce. Whisk or beat with a hand mixer until fully emulsified (no obvious oil floating at the edges).
- Whisk in the vanilla, spice blend, and salt.
- Add the oat flour and baking soda. Stir until completely smooth (oat flour likes to form hidden clumps).
- Fold in the oats, cranberries, and chopped pecans.
- Scoop into prepared pan and spread in an even layer. As the mixture is very thick, this is easier to do if placed in dollops.
- Bake for 23-25 minutes until golden brown and puffy and firm on the edges and does move much in the center if tilted. Remove from oven and allow to cool for at least 30 minutes before cutting into 24 pieces.
- For best results wait until completely cool to cut. For very clean lines, freeze before cutting and use a serrated knife to cut. Bring to room temperature before eating.
- Store at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 3 days or in the freezer for 1 month. Bring to room temperature before eating.
Notes
Oil choice: Any oil will work in this recipe. The best choices are very neutral flavored oils like canola, sunflower, or vegetable. Coconut oil will strongly flavor the bars.
Spice blend: Instead of a particular blend, you can use ½ tsp/1g cinnamon with ¼ tsp/ ½ g ginger and ¼ tsp/ ½ g nutmeg.
Apple sauce: This is both the binding agent and liquid in the bars, much as eggs would be. The pectin in apples acts as the binding agent to provide structure to the bars. Substituting mashed banana will give it a very banana flavor and a more cake-like texture.
Nuts and fruits variations: All add-ins (besides oats) should come to a volume of no more than 2 ½ cups. Mix and match slivered almonds, walnuts, dried cherries or blueberries, and chocolate chips. Sunflower and pumpkin seeds can also be used. Larger dried fruits like apricots, dates, peaches, or pears should be chopped small.