Vegan Black Rasberry Oat Bars

My roommates christened this dessert "Jam Crisp" and that's pretty much what it is. It's made of two layers of crispy oaty-ness with jam sandwiched in the middle. You can use whatever kind of jam you want, it really doesn't matter. It also doesn't matter whether you use jam or jelly or preserves. Preserves are a little easier to spread, but that's about it. The recipe wants you to spread the jam evenly over the bottom crust, but I couldn't get it to work and it turned out just fine. You also want to save enough of the topping to really cover the jam, otherwise the jam itself gets a little crispy, which is gross. When we were at the store buying the jam, my friend and I realized that we really didn't know the difference between jam/jelly/preserves etc. so when I got home, I did a little research and this is what I found out. Jelly is made from fruit juice not whole fruit and has the most amount of pectin. This makes it sort of a gel with a smooth consistency. Jam is made from crushing or grinding whole fruit and has a little bit less pectin than jelly. This makes a spread with pieces of fruit that still holds its shape. Preserves are also made from crushed fruit and have less pectin than either jam or jelly. This makes a spread with largish pieces of fruit that spreads easily. So, for this recipe, it's all a matter of preference. This is a one-bowl recipe that took me about 40 minutes to make: 5 hands on and 35 to bake.

Ingredients

1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup allpurpose flour
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp salt
1 cup oats
1/2 cup fake butter
3/4 cup preserves

Preheat oven to 350. Oil an 8in pan. In a medium bowl combine the sugar, flour, baking soda, salt, and oats. Add butter and mix it in with your hands until it's crumbly. Press 1/2-2/3 of the mixture into the bottom of the pan. Spread jam up to the edge but not touching it. Sprinkle the rest of the crumb over the top and press it gently into the jam. Bake for 35 minutes and let it cool. I know it's tempting to start eating it right away, but this one really needs to cool first or the bars fall apart. Happy munching!