Recently on an airplane leaving Charlotte, North Carolina, I met Dorothy Pfeiffer, a beautiful woman in her mid-seventies. She was heading to California to visit her niece to go to a bridal shower and camping! We immediately hit it off and ended up talking about being a Christian (she shared her love of the Lord and the awesome things he has done in her life), and FOOD, of course. We exchanged recipes, I conveniently had a copy of my Cook Like a Hot Italian Mama Cookbook and she had this winner of a recipe, Apple Oatmeal Bars. She talked about how she made it for a church function one afternoon and how all of the people at the party were raving about this simple recipe. She also confided in me that the engaged couple had requested that each person coming to the bridal shower bring along a time treasured recipe. They were going to collect them and use them as staple recipes after the nuptials. Pretty cool I thought.
We graciously exchanged a recipe book for a recipe. :)
Apple Oatmeal Bars
1 cup of oatmeal
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1/2 cup of butter (cube)
1 cup of flour (if gluten allergies, use gluten-free flour, such as rice flour)
1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
2 1/2 cups of chopped Gala Apples (3 medium sized apples)
1/2 cup of sugar (if diabetic, substitute for sugar for a sugar substitute like Truvia)
Directions: Combine first five ingredients and pat half into an 8-inch by 8-inch pan. Layer apples and sugar. Crumble remaining mixture on top. Bake for 35-45 minutes in a 350 degree oven. Cool, cut, and serve.
