Oatmeal Apricot Cherry Bars

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Oatmeal Apricot Cherry Bars have a sweet oatmeal cookie based layered with jam or fruit butter then finished off with dried cherries and apricots and a sprinkling of white chocolate chips.  This recipe originally published March 2012.

A top view of a plate topped with an Oatmeal Apricto Cherry Bar, drizzled in caramel sauce, with two forks on the plate.

Did you know that January is National Oatmeal Month?  I didn’t until recently but I couldn’t let it go past without making a recipe with oats!  While I love baked oatmeal and make it often, you can’t go wrong with oatmeal cookies. 

I thought these sounded interesting with the oatmeal cookie base, fruit jam on top of that, dried fruit crumble on top, and white chocolate chips to finish it off.   The great thing about this recipe is that you can change things up like the type of fruit and it still tastes really great.

Ingredients:

  • butter
  • brown sugar
  • vanilla
  • flour
  • oats
  • baking soda
  • cinnamon
  • salt
  • dried cherries
  • dried apricots
  • fruit jam or preserves
  • white chocolate chips

1. To make these bars preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray an 8 x 8 pan with cooking spray and set aside.

2. In a medium mixing bowl cream together the butter and brown sugar. Stir in the vanilla and mix well.

3. Add in the flour, oats, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt then stir until combined.

4.  Press the mixture into the prepared pan and cook for 25 minutes.

5. Meanwhile, combine the butter, flour, and brown sugar for the topping in a small mixing bowl. Work into a paste and then add in the dried fruit.

6. Pull the cookie bars out of the oven. Spread the jam or preserves over top. Drop spoonfuls of the fruit topping all over the bars. Sprinkle with white chocolate chips.

7. Bake for an additional 10-15 minutes or until golden.

A bowl of oatmeal, cherry, apricot crumble.

The base of the bars is a sweet oatmeal cookie spiced with cinnamon.  The cookie batter doesn’t totally come together so make sure you press it into the pan so that it bakes together and holds it’s shape.

After it is baked a layer of jam or fruit butter is spread on top of the cookie then that is topped with the chopped dried fruit and chocolate.  I wasn’t sure how I felt about this combination of ingredients but my husband and I loved it!  

I’m not a big fan of white chocolate, can I use a different type?

Yes!   I think the best substitution would actually be dark chocolate since it works really well with dried fruit.  You could also do bittersweet or even milk chocolate but think about what fruit you are pairing with it.

What types of dried fruits can I use in this recipe?

Initially I used dried apricots and cherries.  The second time I made the recipe I used craisins and dried Turkish Apricots.   I think raisins, dried cherries, dried cranberries, dried blueberries, dried apricots, dried mango, or dried figs would all work in this recipe with the chocolate.  Just choose the combination that you would enjoy best!

What can I use besides fruit butter in this recipe?

You can use any fruit jam, fruit preserve, or fruit butter.  I’ve made these three times and I’ve used pear butter, peach butter, and cherry jam.  All three were fantastic.  Just make sure the fruit flavor works with both the chocolate and the dried fruits you are using.  I think apple butter would be too overwhelming just as I think grape jelly or jam wouldn’t really work in this recipe.

Can I add nuts to these bars?

Yes!   The last time I made these bars I added in a half cup of chopped pecans to the topping and it was wonderful!  You can use walnuts, pecans, or almonds and just add it into the crumble mixture that goes on top.  The crunch is really nice!

Pin Image: a plate topped with an Oatmeal Apricto Cherry Bar, drizzled in caramel sauce, with two forks on the plate, text, a cutting board with a bowl of flour, a cup of oats, a cup of cherries, a cup of apricots, a cup of white chocolate chips, a cup of brown sugar, and a stick of butter.

The sweet oatmeal cookie base pairs well with the tart cherries and sweet apricots.   The white chocolate gives it a sweet, creamy finish.   This is a versatile recipe that you can really change up depending on who will be eating it and I’ll be making it again soon!

More Oatmeal Recipes:

If you’ve tried my Oatmeal Apricot Cherry Bars or any other recipe on Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks please take a minute to rate the recipe and leave a comment letting me know how you liked it. I love hearing from you! You can FOLLOW ME on:

A baking dish with an oatmeal cookie base topped with cherries, apricots, and white chocolate chips.

A plate topped with an Oatmeal Apricto Cherry Bar, drizzled in caramel sauce, with two forks on the plate.

Oatmeal Apricot Cherry Bars

Oatmeal Apricot Cherry Bars have a sweet oatmeal cookie base layered with jam or fruit butter then finished off with dried cherries and apricots and a sprinkling of white chocolate chips.
5 from 1 vote
Print Pin
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes
Servings: 16 bars
Author: Hezzi-D

Ingredients

For the cookie base:

  • ½ c. brown sugar
  • 6 Tablespoons butter
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 c. flour
  • 1 c. oats
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon

For the topping:

  • 1/3 c. flour
  • 1/4 c. oats
  • 4 Tablespoons butter
  • 2 Tablespoons brown sugar
  • ½ c. dried cherries chopped
  • 1/2 c. dried apricots chopped
  • ½ c. cherry jam or any fruit butter, preserve, or jam
  • 1/3 c. white chocolate chips

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray an 8 x 8 baking dish with cooking spray.
  • In a medium mixing bowl cream together the butter and brown sugar.  Stir in the vanilla and mix until combined.
  • In another medium mixing bowl combine the flour, oats, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon and stir until combined.  
  • Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix well.
  • Press the mixture into the prepared pan and cook for 25 minutes. 
  • Meanwhile, combine the butter, flour, oats, and brown sugar for the topping in a medium mixing bowl.  Work into a paste and then add in the dried fruit.  
  • Pull the cookie bars out of the oven.  Spread the cherry jam
    over top of the bars.  Drop spoonfuls of the fruit topping all over the bars. 
  • Sprinkle with white chocolate chips. 
  • Bake for an additional 15 minutes or until golden.  
  • Cool completely on a wire rack and cut into 16 squares.

Notes

Recipe adapted from Culinary Cache

A plate topped with an Oatmeal Apricto Cherry Bar, drizzled in caramel sauce, with two forks on the plate.
National Oatmeal Month Recipes:

13 Comments

  1. Wow these bars are really loaded with so many tasty additions and flavors. Personally I love white chocolate in things like this!

  2. I love the apricot and cherries in these bars! I have everything for these oatmeal bars, I’ll be making them today! Can’t wait 🙂

5 from 1 vote (1 rating without comment)

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