Chewy Oatmeal Cookie Bars

You can easily turn this recipe into a drop cookie by chilling the dough before baking on cookie sheet. You can use any dried fruit you wish, but dried cherries are my personal preference because of their tangy sweetness.

1 ¼ cups whole-wheat flour
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. table salt
½ tsp. ground cinnamon
¼ tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
1 cup sweetened shredded coconut
1 cup dried fruit of choice
1 ¼ cup oats, toasted in fry pan until slightly darkened and fragrant
1 cup toasted chopped walnuts
1 ½ cups dark brown sugar
1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
½ cup shortening, butter flavor
2 whole eggs, at room temperature
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350° F. In food processor, pulse first eight ingredients 4-5 times are until well blended. Empty into separate work bowl and stir in chopped walnuts. Set aside. In stand mixer, cream butter and sugar for 2 minutes. Add one egg and a time being sure to scrape down bowl. Add vanilla. Beat for 5 minutes or until light in color and fluffy in volume. Stir in flour mixture until fully incorporated but not over mixed. Spread into 9 x 13 baking pan (sprayed and lined with parchment paper) or chill for 20 minutes then drop onto cookie sheet 1 ½ inch apart. In baking pan, bake for 25 minutes. As cookies bake for 10 minutes.
© 2008 Amanda Dalmath