Cranberry-Oat Bars

Most Sundays, we share a potluck lunch with our church family. Sometimes our meal has a theme, but not always. This week, my friend Kylie challenged us to make a recipe that we had never tried before. These bar cookies were one of my contributions. The original recipe came from Cook’s Illustrated Christmas Cookies magazine. I made a few tweaks (of course) and will definitely add these to my repertoire. These make a delicious dessert and would be great for breakfast as well. Enjoy!

Cranberry-Oat Bars
1 (12-oz.) bag fresh cranberries
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup orange juice
2 Tbsp. orange liqueur
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 egg
2 cup oats
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup chopped pecans

1. Place cranberries and next 3 ingredients in a small saucepan; bring to a boil. Cook, stirring often, until cranberries begin to soften and mixture thickens. Stir in dried cranberries, and cook 1 more minute. Allow mixture to cool slightly.
2. Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in vanilla and egg. Combine oats and next 3 ingredients; gradually beat into butter mixture until combined. Press two-thirds of oat mixture into bottom of a lightly greased aluminum foil-lined 13- x 9-inch baking pan. Spread cranberry mixture over top. Combine remaining oat mixture with chopped pecans. Crumble mixture over top of cranberry mixture.
3. Bake at 40 minutes or until done. Cool in pan two hours. Remove from pan by lifting edges of foil, and cut into squares.