Strawberry Oat Squares

Hi, Everybody! I hope you all had a great weekend and a wonderful time celebrating Easter! The past few weeks have been very busy and rather stressful around here, and I don't know about you, but when I'm stressed, I bake. It's usually late in the evening after work and all our activities are done, but for some reason it helps me unwind. I just find the tasks of sifting flour and whipping up butter and sugar to be so soothing and relaxing, and the smell of something delicious baking in the oven to be so comforting and reassuring. This recipe for my Strawberry Oat Squares was the result of one of those days last week. It had been a long day, and just before I went to work, my husband called me that he had been in a car accident. Thank God he was fine and didn't get hurt at all, there was just a lot of damage on the car. It was a long, stressful day and I knew we didn't have anything for breakfast the following morning, so I looked around my kitchen and came up with these Strawberry Oat Squares. They were so good I wanted to share them with you!

STRAWBERRY OAT SQUARES

*Makes 9 squares*

YOU WILL NEED:

1 1/2 cups rolled oats

3/4 cup whole wheat flour (you could use all-purpose, but this is healthier!)

1/3 cup light brown sugar

1 egg

1/8 cup - 1/4 cup honey

5 tbs oil

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup strawberry preserves (I used reduced sugar preserves)

1 tbs raspberry syrup

DIRECTIONS:

1. In a large bowl, combine oats, flour, cinnamon and salt. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, egg, honey and oil. Add the wet ingredients to the dry, and mix well.

2. Preheat your oven to 375 deg F and line a 9 inch square baking pan with parchment paper. In a small bowl, add the raspberry syrup to the strawberry preserves and stir well. (You could use strawberry jam, but I prefer the taste and texture of the preserves).

3. Place about 2/3 of the granola mixture into the prepared baking pan, making sure you press it into the corners and pat it down so it bakes evenly. Then, spread the preserves over it evenly. Top with the remaining 1/3 of the granola mixture, and bake for 15 minutes, until you can see the preserves bubbling and the topping is golden brown!

These Strawberry Oat Squares are really good, they are sweet, juicy and very moist thanks to the preserves. The oats give them great texture and a chewiness, and the sweet strawberries add a burst of flavor. If you're looking for something different to make for breakfast or just for a mid-day snack, this is a great recipe! I hope you all love it! Happy Baking, Everyone! Have a great week!

I will be linking to:

Mangia Mondays, Skip to My Lou, Makin' You Crave Mondays, Cosy Home Scenes, Tip Junkieand The Shabby Nest.