Wild Oats: Oatsies Recipe From Betty Crocker's Cooky Book

Pop Quiz: when faced with the prospect of imminent Oatsies, the proper reaction is:

A. Panic--you must run from this menace!

B. Dread--you're definitely going to need to visit the doctor.

C. A world-weary sigh--you don't need this today.

D. Delight--you're faced with the prospect of a delicious treat!

Of course, anyone who knows Oatsies knows that the answer is D: you are faced with the prospect of a delicious treat. But for those who may not be in the know, let me share with you what exactly what an oatsie is, from my BFF cookbook, Betty Crocker's Cooky Book:

A delicious caramel-like oat confection topped with chocolate. Shared with us by Charlotte Johnson of our staff, who makes them often for her college-student son and daughter.

And a most sincere thanks to Ms. Johnson, wherever she may be, for these are indeed a treat to be treasured: sweet, lightly salty, nutty, oaty, caramelly, and extremely addictive.

Oatsies

Ingredients

• 2 cups rolled oats
• 1/2 cup brown sugar (packed)
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/4 cup corn syrup (recipe calls for dark; I used light because it is what I had)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 package (6 ounces) semisweet chocolate pieces (I used these nice fat chips)
• 1/4 cup chopped nuts (I used pecans)

Procedure

1. Heat oven to 400 F.
2. Mix oats and sugar in a large, heatproof bowl (you'll need to pour a hot mixture over it soon).
3. Melt butter; add syrup, salt, and vanilla. Pour over the oats and sugar; mix well.
4. Pat mixture into a greased square pan (I used 8x8-inches).
5. Bake 8-10 minutes--do not overbake! (How do you know it's done? It will be lightly bubbling on the sides)
6. Melt chocolate and spread on top--or, if you're like me and don't read directions thoroughly, just sprinkle on the chocolate pieces and let them melt on the still-hot mixture.
7. Sprinkle nuts on top of this, and let cool (or, again, like me, don't follow the directions and eat immediately. Messy, but tasty). You'll need a pretty sharp knife to cut these, as they're pretty sticky. Happily, I have a sharp and fancy knife called the "Jessica" (like me!) with which I can do these things.

Comments

[Wei-Wei]

I really do love oats. I made a maple syrup bar-like thing with them the other day (pancake syrup, brown sugar, butter, melted over the stove, then mix in oats with half (!!) an egg, flour and then bake for 25 minutes.) and I must say... oats are "healthy" but they sure make tasty baked goods ;)

Wei-Wei

[Meg]

These look so tasty! Plus, they seem like the American version of a very popular UK treat - the flapjack. Sub out corn syrup for golden syrup and don't add any nuts. Different but good!

[Shira]

These pictures are amazing...I think I may go whip up some oatsies right now!

[Carolyn]

ZOMG I have made these three or four times since I read this. These things are cracktastic! At least I can tell myself that oats are healthy...right?

[winch]

Excellently written article, if only all bloggers offered the same content as you, the internet would be a much better place. Please keep it up!

[Rachel]

These look so delicious! As Meg mentioned above, they look a lot like my favorite English treat, the flapjack (which is nothing like an American flapjack!). I'm planning a flapjack post on my blog in the future - would you mind if I included a link to this post? I'm always excited to find variations and I'm also a huge fan of vintage Betty Crocker!