A long time ago before I had my children I worked at a real estate office. I loved my job and sometimes think back to those good old days. Not that I would change anything about my life now but it was a fun working environment and I had many friends there. There was this girl who would make these wonderful Blackberry Bars and bring them to the office to share. She did this quite often and everyone raved about them, including me. I finally had to ask her for the recipe which she was happy to share.

When a recipe calls for oatmeal and whole wheat flour it is automatically healthy, right? In my opinion those two healthy ingredients cancel out the stick and a half of butter called for in these. When I make them I always think about how these would be perfect for a quick breakfast treat or something to make for a brunch. Can I just say too how gooooood your home smells when brown sugar, butter, and oatmeal are baking away in your oven. They are great warm, right out of the oven, with a dollop (love that word) of whipped cream or vanilla ice cream. You can rewarm them in the microwave too. I used blackberry jam in mine but you could change it out for any other flavor that sounds good. I've even used sugar free before and they have turned out great. So here you go for a simple yummy treat.

Oatmeal Blackberry Bars

3/4 cup butter, softened (1 1/2 sticks)
1 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/2 cups oats
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 (10-12 oz) jar blackberry preserves

Preheat oven to 400 F. Cream together butter and brown sugar until combined. Mix in the flour, oats, salt, and baking soda.

Tightly pat 1/2- 3/4 of the oat mixture into a greased 9x13 pan.

I had a little helper for this part

Carefully spread preserves on the top. I just dollop little spoonfuls all over the top and then gently spread them together.


Take the remainder of the oatmeal mixture and sprinkle it over the top. You can press it in gently if you desire.