Cranberry Oatmeal Bars…

For the past few years, my friends and I have a Thanksgiving dinner together prior to the holiday. Since Thanksgiving is usually a time spent with family, the early scheduling of our dinner allows us to not only share a holiday with close friends, but it allows us to experiment with dishes that we might not traditionally have. Knowing I would be feasting on a wealth of pumpkin, stuffing and turkey at multiple venues this year, I decided to make an alternative dessert: Cranberry Oatmeal Bars for this year’s dinner. I recommend bringing something like this if you are a guest at a Thanksgiving this year as these bars are easy to transport, can be made ahead of time and can be sent home with guests if their bellies are too full for that last dessert. I’ve included the Cooking Light recipe I used below, but I plan on making this Our Best Bites version very soon.

    Crust:
    * 4.5  ounces  all-purpose flour (about 1 cup)
    * 1  cup  quick-cooking oats
    * 1/2  cup  packed brown sugar
    * 1/4  teaspoon  salt
    * 1/4  teaspoon  baking soda
    * 1/4  teaspoon  ground cinnamon
    * 6  tablespoons  butter, melted
    * 3  tablespoons  orange juice
    * Cooking spray

    Filling:
    * 1 1/3  cups  dried cranberries (about 6 ounces)
    * 3/4  cup  sour cream
    * 1/2  cup  granulated sugar
    * 2  tablespoons  all-purpose flour
    * 1  teaspoon  vanilla extract
    * 1/2  teaspoon  grated orange rind
    * 1  large egg white, lightly beaten

1. Preheat oven to 325°.

2. To prepare crust, weigh or lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Combine flour and next 5 ingredients (through cinnamon) in a medium bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Drizzle butter and juice over flour mixture, stirring until moistened (mixture will be crumbly). Reserve 1/2 cup oat mixture. Press remaining oat mixture into the bottom of an 9×9–inch baking dish coated with cooking spray.

3. To prepare filling, combine cranberries, sour cream, granulated sugar, and remaining ingredients in a medium bowl, stirring well. Spread cranberry mixture over prepared crust; sprinkle reserved oat mixture evenly over filling. Bake at 325° for 40 minutes or until edges are golden. Cool completely in pan on a wire rack.