My husband has a sweet tooth that constantly surprises me. Not only does he love candy of all kinds, and would cheerfully eat dessert with every meal, but he also demands that his desserts be very sweet. It's a constant battle because I'm the opposite-- even though I love to bake, I can usually take or leave sweets, and only really love rich chocolatey things to be very sweet.

So, Otis really doesn't like the apple-oat bars I made after my cinnamon daydream. I think they're especially tasty, but I've promised him cupcakes to make up for the disppointment.

Apple-Oat Bars

Ingredients

2 sticks unsalted butter (if you can get it, try Kate's Homemade butter. Yum.)
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 t vanilla
1 1/2 cups flour
1 t baking soda
1 1/2 t salt (a little more salt than usual brings out the apple flavor)
2 t cinnamon
2 cups old fashioned oats
3/4 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup dried apple, cut into small pieces

1. Preheat oven to 350°
2. Cream the butter and sugars
3. Mix in the eggs, one at a time
4. Mix in the vanilla
5. Mix in the flour, soda, salt, and cinnamon
6. Fold in the oats, walnuts, and apples
7. Spread into ungreased 13 x 9 pan
8. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until slightly brown on top
9. Let cool for 5 minutes before cutting into squares