Date and Apricot Bars


Submitted By: Agnes Schrock

Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup shortening, melted
  • 1 cup brown sugar, packed
  • 2 cups flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 2 cups oatmeal
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions


Blend shortening with sugar. Sift flour and soda together, and mix well with oatmeal. Blend into brown sugar mixture, working with hands until crumbly. Blend in vanilla. Press half of mixture firmly into the bottom of a well-greased 8-x-12-inch baking pan.
Filling:
1 cup finely cut pitted dates
13/4 cups (about 1/2 pound)
cooked unsweetened dried apricots, well drained
1/2 cup brown or white sugar
2 tablespoons apricot juice (reserved from cooked apricots) or water
Mix fruit, sugar, and apricot juice or water in a saucepan. Boil until mixture thickens (about three minutes), stirring to prevent burning. Cool slightly.
Carefully spread prepared filling over entire bottom layer of dough. Place remaining crumbs on top, and press down gently but firmly with your hand or back of spoon. Bake 30 minutes at 350°. When cool, cut into bars.
Yield: 32 bars.