Peanut Butter and Jelly Oat Bars

My kids are living their best end-of-summer life with late late nights playing video games, watching movies, hanging with friends and sleeping away the mornings. They eat popsicles for breakfast, ask to be shuttled around town at a moments notice, roll their eyes when I remind them to do their chores (that’s nothing new) and leave a slug-trail of teenager remnants all around my house (cups, discarded socks, phone chargers, one earbud, sunglasses, sweaty t-shirts). I’m not entirely sure they’ve eaten a real meal other than dinner since school got out in June and their eyeballs certainly haven’t see the clock at 6am since then either.

Next week is going to be quite literally a wake up call as a new school year kicks off. They might not be ready for it, but I most certainly am. I’ll miss having them around all day (no really, I will), but I know we all do a little better with a routine. They would disagree, wholeheartedly, but it’s the truth. They need structure and so do I.

I always love to make a fun back to school treat the week my kids start school. Usually I lean towards some sort of chocolate chip type cookie, but for some reason I couldn’t get a peanut butter and jelly sandwich out of my head. Maybe because my teens are always begging me to buy boxes of Uncrustables?

What came out of my musings for a peanut butter and jelly type treat is this super yummy peanut butter oat bar with blueberry jam filling. This recipe took a bit of trial and error, but I love the final result. The crust is a hearty oat mixture with a touch of brown sugar and cinnamon and just a hint of peanut butter. The blueberry jam filling is so easy to throw together and perfectly pairs with the oat and peanut butter flavors.

While I love the fresh blueberry jam, its worth mentioning that you could absolutely use prepared jam (store bought is just fine) instead of making your own filling. Instead of making the blueberry jam as the recipe calls for, use about a cup of jam, any flavor you prefer, and continue on with the recipe.

Wishing families all across the Yakima Valley a wonderful, happy, healthy and safe school year ahead!

Peanut Butter and Jelly Oat Bars

• For the crust/crumble

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

• 1 cup rolled oats

• 1/2 cup brown sugar

• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda

• 1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt

• 1/2 cup melted salted butter

• 2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

• For the blueberry jam

• 3 cups frozen blueberries

• 3 tablespoons maple syrup

• 1 tablespoon corn starch

• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

• Pinch of kosher salt

• 2 tablespoons water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line an 8x8 baking dish with parchment paper. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, baking soda and salt. Mix to combine. In a microwave safe bowl, melt the butter and peanut butter in 30 second increments, stirring between each interval until melted and combined. Add the vanilla extract to the butter mixture and pour over the oat mixture. Use a wooden spoon to combine until a crumble forms.

Reserving one-fourth of the crumble mixture, press the rest of the mixture evenly into the prepared pan. Use the bottom of a glass or measuring cup to tamp down the oat mixture and ensure its evenly spread across the pan.

Set the pan aside while you make the jam. In a saucepan, combine the blueberries, maple syrup, lemon juice, corn starch and water. Mix together over medium low heat, stirring constantly until the juice from the fruit begins to thicken and the berries begin to break down, about five minutes. The fruit mixture doesn’t need to look like jam you buy in the store, you just want the fruit to slightly break down and a jammy syrup to form.

Pour the jam over the oat crust and use the rest of the crumble mixture to top the jam, Use your fingers to pinch the oat mixture into nickel and quarter size crumbles.

Bake in the preheated oven for about 30 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and the blueberries bubble along the edges. Remove the bars from the oven and allow to cool in the pan for about five minutes before transferring to a wire rack to finish cooling. Once the bars are completely cooled, slice into 16 pieces. Store extras in a lidded container in the refrigerator for up to two days.