I can't claim authenticity.* But, hey, these fruity oaty bars will not give you a big headache. They may, however, eaten in sufficient quantities, cause you to "bust out of your blouse." Similar recipes may be familiar to you from childhood; these are some of the first cookies I ever made. Still good, and this is my favorite variation. Don't neglect the coconut toasting- it makes a difference. This version comes from Gourmet, via epicurious.com, albeit under another name:
1 1/2 cups sweetened flaked coconut
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 sticks cold unsalted butter, cut int.
o 1/2" pieces
1 1/2 cups rolled oats, non instant, preferably as fresh as possible
3/4 cup seedless raspberry jam or other strongly flavored jam- I used homemade yellow plum, my favorite of this year's preserves-it has a bit of bite
Preheat oven to 375°F.
Spread 3/4 cup coconut evenly on a baking sheet and toast in middle of oven, stirring once, for about 8 minutes, until golden. Cool.
Blend together flour, sugars, and salt in a food processor, then add butter and blend until a dough begins to form. Transfer to a bowl and knead in oats and toasted coconut until combined well.
Reserve 3/4 cup dough, then press remainder evenly into bottom of a buttered 13- by 9-inch metal baking pan and spread jam over it. Crumble reserved dough evenly over jam, and sprinkle with remaining 3/4 cup (untoasted) coconut.Bake in middle of oven until golden, 20 to 25 minutes. Cool completely in pan on a rack. Loosen from sides of pan with a sharp knife, then lift out in 1 piece and transfer to a cutting board. Makes 24 bars.
*I also can't be sure whether subliminal messages in the advert will trigger a sudden attempt to wipe out all the patrons of your favorite drinking establishment. That probably depends on where you, uh, went to school. As will the extent of your success. In the possible bar fight, that is. Pretty much anyone can make these cookies successfully.
The complete Fruity Oaty Bars jingle appears in an easter egg on the dvd of Serenity, from Universal.
you might want to add a 1 before the 1/2 cup in the listed quantity of coconut, just in case.
mmm.
Posted by: clerambault | October 27, 2006 at 06:42 PM
Browsing foodblogs, the Serenity nod caught my eye. Hurrah for the reference! I am enchanted with the originality of your post, and can't help but grin at a fellow Browncoat. :)
Posted by: Julianne | October 27, 2006 at 07:54 PM
clerembault-thanks-it's fixed!
julianne-thanks. So far, they have proved entirely harmless, but you never know.
Posted by: lindy | October 27, 2006 at 08:15 PM
Hooray for Serenity! We're big fans. The bars look great too - in fact, they look like they might provide a better approximation of the raspberry mazurkas I tried to recreate around Christmas last year. I'm getting hungry just thinking about oats, coconut and raspberry...mmm...
Posted by: Melissa | October 28, 2006 at 05:17 PM
They're the ones with teeth and you have to smash them.
Posted by: Steve | October 28, 2006 at 08:52 PM
Oh, no -- that fruity oaty bar song is stuck in my bead.
Posted by: Julie | October 28, 2006 at 11:50 PM
melissa-I think they are essentially the same cookie. I didn't know they were Polish, though. I always thought of them as American and Betty Crocker-ish.
steve-It does look better in red. I will check the canned goods.
julie-uh oh, um- blame it on the Blue Sun?
Posted by: lindy | October 29, 2006 at 06:38 AM
First smile of the morning! How clever to include the film (advanced bloggism!) and now you have me singing all morning...
Posted by: Baking Soda | October 30, 2006 at 02:45 AM
I guess I should actually open up my Serenity DVD. I've been saving it for a special occasion. (And I do have a Blue Sun t-shirt to wear while I watch it.)
Posted by: eg | October 30, 2006 at 09:49 AM
Just when I think I can't possibly adore you more than I already do, you post something like this -- by "this" I mean both the recipe and the Fruity Oaty Bars jingle. Thank you, Lindy.
(hums Fruity Oaty Bars jingle)
(feels sudden mysterious desire to apply to Pitt Law)
Posted by: Bakerina | November 05, 2006 at 04:17 PM
Bakerina- You caught me. The subliminal messages can trigger all sorts of mysterious urges. Some might say the urge to go to law school is among the most mysterious of all. I still haven't figured out what triggered me, and I've been a lawyer for 14 years now!
Posted by: lindy | November 05, 2006 at 06:15 PM
Oooh, a fellow Browncoat. I gotta try your recipe!
Can you tell by my domain name that I'm a hopeless fan?
http://fruityoaty.com/ Hehe. :)
Posted by: fruityoaty | November 24, 2006 at 04:37 PM
Hello fruityoaty. I hope you will like my version of your namesake, and feed them to all your browncoat and other associates.
Posted by: lindy | November 26, 2006 at 10:26 AM