Fig Crumble Bars

Does anyone else love fig newtons as much as I do?  I have fond memories of eating fig newtons at my grandparents' house as a child.  Nowadays, those cookies are more of a treat (think road trip food), not an every day occurrence.  If you remember, I bought fig butter (like apple butter, only made with figs) at Trader Joe's a while back for this prosciutto and brie grilled cheese.  I had quite a bit of fig butter leftover so I went searching for recipes and found this little gem.  Perfect for the kid in me that still craves those times (and cookies) at my grandparents' house.  Enjoy!

Fig Crumble Bars (adapted from bakingbites.com)

1/2 c. butter at room temperature
1/2 c. sugar
1/4 c. brown sugar
1 c. white whole wheat flour
1 c. oatmeal (regular or quick cooking)
1/2 t. salt
8-10 oz. fig butter (or fig preserves) at room temperature.  (I estimated I used about 10 tablespoons for this recipe.  I just used what I had left in my jar.  By all means, use the whole 11 oz. jar if you are so inclined.  I'm not judging!)

Preheat the oven to 350.  Line an 8X8 square baking dish with foil and spray with cooking spray.  In a large bowl cream together the butter and sugars until light and fluffy.  Beat in the flour, oatmeal and salt until crumbly.  Set aside 1 cup of the mixture.

Pour the remaining oatmeal mixture into the prepared pan and press it firmly into an even layer.  Spread the fig preserves over the crust.  Top with the remaining crumble mixture and bake for 30-35 minutes, until golden brown.  Cool completely in the pan then use the aluminum foil to lift the bars out before slicing.

16 bars (160 calories each) according to my calculator on loseit.com