Oatmeal Raspberry Coconut Bars

Alas, I am back to present to you my oatmeal raspberry coconut bars! I am a huge fan of cookies and bar type cookies so these fit right up my alley. The original recipe that I was going from was one I have made, and posted, before. I think I called them fruit oatmeal bars and made them with a mix of blueberries and raspberries. The crust is ultra simple. A mix of flours, salt, and sugar, and then a fat like Earth Balance is crumbled into it. Kinda like a shortbread or pie crust. For this bar I decided to jazz it up a bit and by that I mean get rid of the sugar and butter substitute. Instead I used agave nectar and coconut oil. At first I was hesitant to use coconut oil since I didn't want these bars to be coconut overload. Is that even possible though? So back up to the flours in the dough. I used a mix of brown rice flour and Bob's Red Mill gluten free all purpose flour. My all time favorite flour combo. I then added a little xanthan gum and salt. Next went in the agave nectar and coconut oil (melted) and mixed until combined. Oats and toasted coconut followed. The dough resembled oatmeal cookie dough. I set aside 1 cup of the dough for the topping.


I pressed this dough into a 13 x 9 inch pan lined with parchment, for easy removal. On top I spread a seedless raspberry jam though you could be creative here and use any flavor jam or preserves you would like. Be sure to use a high quality jam, don't be cheap here. Better yet make your own! Then I crumbled the saved 1 cup of dough over the jam and lastly sprinkled some un-toasted coconut on top. Baked until the jam was bubbly and the coconut on top was perfectly toasted, about 25 minutes.


Unlike most other gluten free items I make I cooled these bars in the pan completely. This way cutting was a lot easier. These will keep in an air tight container for up to 3 days, but I suspect they will be gone far before that. 

Last summer when I did my first garden I started very late (in June) but luckily still reaped the benefits. This year I am more prepared and sowing seeds starts tomorrow. I will be posting pics and how I am sowing my seeds along the way! Night! -kb