APRICOT FILLING:

2 cups water
2 cups dried apricots
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch

CRUST:

1 1/2 cups flour
1 cup old-fashioned OR quick-cooking oats
3/4 cup 10x sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted & cooled
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp baking soda

preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

prepare the filling. in a medium saucepan, heat the water and apricots to a boil. reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes. the apricots will be soft. drain, reserving 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid; discard the remaining liquid.

using a food processor, puree the apricots. return the apricots to the saucepan and add the sugar, cornstarch, and the reserved cooking liquid. cook over medium-low heat, stirring for 1 minute, or until the filling thickens. cool.

while the filling cools, prepare the crust. in a lg bowl, combine the flour, oats, and sugar with an electric mixer. beat in the melted butter, cinnamon, and baking soda, then continue until the mixture forms crumbs, about 1 minute. reserve 1 cup of the crumbs for the topping. press the remaining crumbs evenly into the bottom of an ungreased 8″ baking pan.

spread the apricot filling over the crust. sprinkle with the reserved topping. bake in the center of the oven fdor 30-40 minutes, or until the fillng is set and the crust is firm. cool completely on a wire rack.

using a small sharp knife, cut into bars.

makes 30 bars