Gold Bar Cookies

Today's recipe is from Robin Robertson's "Vegan on the Cheap" book, on page 218. I was excited to add this to my vegan and vegetarian cookbook collection. This book will teach me how to make my own "fake meats" instead of simply buying them at the store. I'm very excited about the Big Stick Pepperoni recipe, which I might post about later. But now lets skip straight to dessert.

The first thing you should know about this recipe is what I tweaked. Instead of raisins, I used CRAISINS, and instead of ground peanuts I used chopped walnuts. I also used orange preserves instead of peach or apricot (for this recipe I will probably always use preserves that I already have). The most drastic change I made to the recipe was to use a much smaller baking pan (8.6 x 8.6 instead of 9 x 13 inches), which made the cookies come out soft and doughy instead of thin and possibly crispy? I'll let you know I try it the "right way." So here goes, the recipe:

1 and 3/4 cup quick-cooking oats (I used regular oats)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup light brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup vegan margarine, softened
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter, softened
1 (8-ounce) jar peach or apricot preserves
1/2 cup golden raisins (CRAISINS!)
1/2 cup ground unsalted roasted peanuts

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a 9 x13 inch baking pan and set aside.
2. In a food processor, combine the oats, flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Pulse to mix well. Add the margarine and peanut butter and pulse until crumbly. I had to mix some of this by hand because my blender couldn't handle it. Next time I do this I will just blend just oats by themselves, and then mix it with everything else in a bowl.
3. Place about 3 cups of the crumb mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan and press it evenly with your hands to form the cookie base. Reserve the remaining mixture.
4. Place the preserves in a small bowl and stir until smooth. Spread over he top of the cookie base to within 1/4 inch of he edge (I just covered the entire thing).
5. Add the raisins and peanuts to the remaining crumb mixture and sprinkle it over the top, pressing it into the fruit.
6. Bake until golden, 25 to 30 minutes. Set aside to cool for 15 minutes before cutting.

Alright, so I couldn't wait the full 15 minutes, and it came out a little soft.

Because I used a smaller baking pan, the jam wasn't spread out over 9 x 13 inches and the gold bar is almost too sweet. Here is what the layers looked like.

Cookie fail? I think it was still lip-smacking-licious!