Now for some real fruit bars

I'm back to blogging about sweets, but with good reason.  This Apricot Oat Bar recipe from Giada De Laurentiis is fantastic!  I recently saw it on her Food Network program, "Giada at Home," and thought it looked good.  But I know enough about TV production to know that looks aren't always what they seem.  However, I'm happy to report these bars are the real deal.  I'm typically not impressed with homemade fruit bar recipes since many turn out to be dry.  Not these.  They are moist and chewy, thanks in part to the apricot preserves (and probably the butter).  Word of caution: they're highly addictive.

On a separate note, my baby is 3 months old today and my blog is now officially 1 year old (as of the 18th)!  It's going to be a fun second year of blogging, especially when Claire gets to start eating baby food!  You can be sure I'll blog all about that experience.

Apricot Oat Bars
(Courtesy of Giada De Laurentiis)
Link: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/apricot-oat-bars-recipe/index.html

Ingredients:
Vegetable oil cooking spray
Filling
1 (13-ounce) jar apricot jam or preserves (about 1 1/4 cups)
8 dried apricots, chopped into 1/4-inch pieces (about 1/3 cup)
Crust
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 packed cup light brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt (regular salt works just fine here)
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 3/4 cups old-fashioned oats
1 cup (4 ounces) coarsely chopped walnuts
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted
1 egg, at room temperature, beaten
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Method:
Put an oven rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9 by 13 by 2-inch metal baking dish with vegetable oil cooking spray. Line the bottom and sides of the pan with parchment paper. Spray the parchment paper with vegetable oil cooking spray and set aside.

Filling: In a small bowl, mix together the jam and the apricots. Set aside.

Crust: In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, cinnamon, salt and baking soda. Stir in the oats and walnuts. Add the butter, egg and vanilla and stir until incorporated.

Using a fork or clean fingers, lightly press half of the crust mixture onto the bottom of the prepared pan. Using a spatula, spread the filling over the crust leaving a 1/2-inch border around the edge of the pan. Cover the filling with the remaining crust mixture and gently press to flatten. Bake until light golden, about 30 to 35 minutes. Cool for 1 hour. Cut into bars and store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

The finished product: Apricot Oat Bars