APRICOT SESAME OAT BARS

APRICOT SESAME OAT BARS image

Yield 24 4 1/2 by 1 inch bars

Number Of Ingredients 13

Ingredients

Nonstick cooking spray
1 cup whole-wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
1 1/4 cups rolled oats
2 1/2 cups whole dried apricots,1 cup very roughly chopped and set aside
1/2 cup sesame seeds, toasted
8 Tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick), at room temperature, cut into 8pieces
3/4 cup light-brown sugar, packed

Steps:

Set the oven rack in the middle position and heat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 13-by-9-inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Cut a piece of foil or parchment as wide as the pan and about 22 inches long and fit it into the sprayed pan, pushing it into the corners and up and over the sides at either end (there will be overhang at both ends). Spray the foil or parchment with additional nonstick cooking spray and set the pan aside. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon to mix well. In a smaller bowl, beat the eggs with the vanilla and sesame oil until well blended. In a food processor, process the oats and whole apricots until they're finely chopped and well mixed, then transfer the apricot mixture to a large bowl and mix in the sesame seeds. In the food processor, process the butter and brown sugar until uniform, stopping as necessary to scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the egg mixture and process, again scraping bowl as necessary, until well blended, then add the flour mixture in the same manner. Finally, add the apricot-oats mixture and the chopped apricots and pulse to process into a stiff, sticky, uniform dough. Turn the dough into the baking pan, then wet your hands and gently spread the dough out evenly, taking care not to compress it. Bake until the surface is golden brown and the edges have pulled away from the pan, about 35 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack, cool for about 20 minutes, and use the ends of the foil or parchment as handles to lift the loaf out of the pan and place it on the rack. Cool to room temperature, then peel off and discard the foil or parchment and, using a sharp chef's knife, cut off and discard the very edges of the loaf. Cut the loaf in half lengthwise, then cut each half crosswise into 12 bars. Store bars in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.