B is for Baking: Cranberry Oatmeal Pecan Bars
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As soon as Thanksgiving time comes around, I start thinking about all things cranberry. I love the tartness that dried or fresh cranberries can add to a dish. I usually have whole cranberries frozen in the freezer and a bag of dried cranberries in the pantry. A handful of frozen whole cranberries adds an elegant touch to a glass of cold ice water, soda water with lime or sparkling white wine. Yum! A few dried cranberries are a delicious addition to a salad or a bowl of oatmeal. Another one of my favorite ways to use cranberries is in this recipe for cranberry oatmeal pecan bars. These bars are dense and chewy and bursting with flavor. They are delicious with a hot cup of coffee, but sweet enough to be served for dessert. Are you ready to make this great recipe? Here we go:
Cranberry Oatmeal Pecan Bars
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 cup vanilla Greek yogurt
- 2 egg whites, lightly beaten
- 2 Tablespoons coconut oil, melted
- 2 Tablespoons milk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 1 1/2 cup flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3 cups rolled oats
- 3/4 cup shredded coconut
- 1 cup dried cranberries
- 1/2 cup chopped pecans
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a medium bowl combine brown sugar, sugar, egg whites, yogurt, coconut oil, milk and vanilla. Mix well and set aside.
- In a large bowl add the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Stir until combined. Gently pour in the yogurt mixture and mix well. Fold in the oats, cranberries, pecans and coconut. The dough will become thick and sticky.
- Spread the dough evenly into the bottom of an ungreased 9x13 inch baking pan pressing down slightly.
- Bake for 30 minutes or until light golden brown.
- Cool completely on a wire rack. Cut into bars and store tightly covered.
My tiny baking assistant
Look at all that chewy goodness!
Helpful Tips
- My egg separator is one of my favorite kitchen gadgets. How do you separate egg whites without one?
- Another kitchen tool I absolutely adore is my small silicon spatula. It makes getting every last drop of batter out of the bowl a snap.
- Experiment with different kinds of dried fruit – raisins or dried cherries would be delicious.
- Try different kinds of nuts also – walnuts or almonds would make an nice alternative to the pecans. You can also make this recipe nut-free if you prefer.
- I have often thought about adding chocolate chips to this recipe, but have never tried it. Dark chocolate? White chocolate? Semi-sweet chocolate? I bet any kind of chocolate chip would be good.
- Not a Greek yogurt fan? Use regular low-fat plain or vanilla yogurt instead.
- Be sure to let the pan cool completely on a wire rack before cutting into bars. This great wire cooling rack comes with a free silicon spatula! How cool is that?
- Enjoy!
These hardy, chewy cranberry oatmeal pecan bars are a delicious treat. Not too sweet, but full of yummy flavors. Let me know how they turn out for you in the comment section. Happy baking, my friends!
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