Both hubby and I are tea drinkers, and were delighted to discover a tea shop in Brattleboro, VT, where we go every few years for the annual Strolling of the Heifers, a major dairy and slow food festival that’s held on the first Saturday of June. We stumbled onto a placed called the Twilight Tea Lounge (now closed, sadly) that had hundreds of tea options and most importantly for hubby, GF options. He was thrilled the first time we were there to eat a yummy raspberry bar.
This is something I created based on those bars.
Raspberry Coconut Oatmeal bars Ingredients
For the bottom
- 1 1/2 c. GF baking mix (I used Bob’s 1-to-1)
- 1 1/2 c. oatmeal (preferably coarse ground Irish or regular, not quick)
- 1/2 c softened butter
- 1 egg, beaten
- 2/3 c brown sugar
- 1/8 granulated sugar
- Dash of salt
For the top
- 3/4 c toasted coconut flakes
- 1/2 c GF flour/baking mix
- 3/4 c oatmeal
- 1/3 c. brown sugar
- 3-4 tbsps softened butter
In the center
- 1 1/2 c. raspberry preserves or jam
Toast the coconut lightly. Meanwhile combine the dry ingredients for the bottom in a large mixing bowl , and mix – add the egg and the melted butter and mix until moistened.
Press the mixture into the bottom of a 13×9 pan. Place in a 350 F oven for 10 minutes until it browns a bit on the top.
Remove and cover with the jam or preserves. 
Mix together the remaining ingredients, dry ingredients first and sprinkle over the top. Place in oven and cook for an additional 20-25 minutes until golden brown on the top and the jelly is bubbling.
Raspberry Preserves
You can use jam or make your own if you can get some fresh raspberries. Since mid-July is primo berry season, I decided to try my hand at making my own.
- 2 -4 cups Raspberries, washed and either chopped or put through a food mill.
- 1-2 c sugar
- 2-3 tbsps of lemon juice
- bit of salt
- 1/3 c of water
Put the berries in a pot over medium – high heat. Add the water, sugar, and lemon juice and cook until it starts to thicken. If you want it very thick, you can add cornstartch (dissolve it first or you’ll get lumps) or pectin, which is trickier to use.
This should take about 5 minutes. When it stops dripping off the spoon and is thick enough to coat the back, it’s done.
Don’t let it boil too high or it will scorch the sugar.
Note: if you get too much water, it will be too runny, but never fear, you can always put in a bit of corn starch dissolved in warm water to thicken it. Make sure it boils after you add the corn starch or it won’t do its job.
You can try to remove some of the seed with the mill afterwards but they don’t bother me so I just leave them in.
Gluten-less living (shouldn't mean less living) 