Holiday Dessert Idea

With the end of the year rapidly approaching, many holidays are on the horizon! It can be extremely difficult to watch your calorie intake while enjoying the festivities with your loved ones! Thankfully, My wonderful mother made me a special treat last year for our celebration and I wanted to share her recipe with you all! While most ingredients can be substituted to your dietary needs, I am a huge fan of “Sugar Free” products, so I tend to gravitate towards those!

Strawberry Squares:

Ingredients

1 3/4 sticks salted butter, cut into pieces, plus more for greasing pan

(My mom substituted the ZERO calorie spray butter)

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 cup oats

1 cup packed brown sugar

(My mom substituted Splenda Brown Sugar)

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

One 10 to 12-ounce jar strawberry preserves

(My mom substituted sugar free strawberry preserves)
Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 9-by-13-inch rectangular pan.

Mix together the butter, flour, oats, brown sugar, baking powder and salt. Press half the oat mixture into the prepared pan. Spread with the strawberry preserves. Sprinkle the other half of the oat mixture over the top and pat lightly. Bake until light brown, 30 to 40 minutes. Let cool completely, and then cut into squares.

My mouth is watering just thinking of these bad boys right now! I cannot wait to enjoy some of these this holiday season!

Ignite your spark,

Samantha Riddle
Miss International 2014