I’ve been wanting to do a gluten free recipe for awhile because a few of my coworkers at work have celiac disease. Oftentimes, the stuff I bring to work they can’t eat. I also was curious to see if I could make something I personally love gluten free. This recipe for gluten free oatmeal apricot bars is my first foray into gluten free baking. And I would say it was a success!
How I Came to Truly Understand Celiac Disease
“Gluten free” was something I never took seriously because I wasn’t born with many allergies. I used to roll my eyes at this stuff because I thought people were doing it because it was fashionable. It wasn’t until I met people who truly had a wheat allergy that I started to finally understand how serious the issue was. For example, my manager told me that he grew up as a pretty sick kid, and he didn’t know why. It was only when he tried the Whole30 diet that he discovered he was allergic to gluten and that changed his life.
My Gluten Free Baking Struggles
I first attempted to make my Oatmeal Cranberry Raisin Cookies gluten free but failed. Gluten free baking was hard I realized! My cookies were so dry they didn’t flatten correctly in the oven. They just stayed as balls. From this experience, I learned that I needed to make adjustments to my dry ingredients to avoid the same mistake. Next, I decided to try making my oatmeal raspberry bars gluten free.
Making My Oatmeal Apricot Bars
A local brand called Jamnation Jams sent me a jar of organic apricot jam to try, so I decided to repurpose my oatmeal raspberry bars recipe using this jam. I also made it gluten free! Instead of all purpose flour, I used coconut flour from Bob’s Red Mill, and I substituted rolled oats with gluten free oats also from Bob’s Red Mill.
This is my first time using Bob’s Red Mill products, and I gotta say I’m impressed. Many of their products are gluten free, and they work well for baking. My personal favorite is the coconut flour. I lovveeee coconut, and the flour is not only gluten free, it adds a subtle coconut flavor to my baked foods!
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Gluten Free Oatmeal Apricot Bars
Ingredients
- ½ cup light brown sugar packed
- 1 cup coconut flour
- ¼ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 cup gluten free oats
- ½ cup butter softened
- ¾ cup apricot jam
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease one 8 inch square pan, and line with greased foil.
- Combine brown sugar, flour, baking soda, salt, and oats. Rub in the butter using your hands or a pastry blender to form a crumbly mixture. Press 2 cups of the mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan. Spread the jam to within 1/4 inch of the edge. Sprinkle the remaining crumb mixture over the top, and lightly press it into the jam.
- Bake for 35 to 40 minutes in preheated oven, or until lightly browned. Allow to cool before cutting into bars.
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by Becca Du