oatmeal (and such) bars

i've been contemplating this recipe (as seen on kraft's website) for years, and i finally decided to try it out.  because i'm so wonderfully awesome, i'll even repeat the recipe here instead of making you go to the other site.  i will say, though, that i don't quite know whether this is classified as a dessert, a breakfast bar, or something else entirely.

see the pretty flowers?

ingredients:
- 1 and 1/2 cup flour
- 1 and 1/2 cup oatmeal (quaker quick cook)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup margarine
- 1 and 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 4 oz (or so) semi-sweet chocolate (i used a leftover bag of tiny chips from the back of my freezer)
- 1/2 cup (or more) pecans
- 1 cup (or so) craisins
- 1/4 cup orange juice

preparation:
mix the first four dry ingredients together (flour, oatmeal, baking powder, and salt) and set aside.  thoroughly mix the margarine and brown sugar in a separate bowl.  mix in the eggs, and then gradually blend in the flour mixture.

on a personal note, i tried using a hand mixer (rather than the old-fashioned spoon approach).  unfortunately, the bowl i was using wasn't big enough to contain all the splatter.  very messy.  so i went to the fall-back spoon approach.  i clearly don't do well with certain technology.  how did i become an engineer again?

anyway, once the batter is mixed, add the craisins and orange juice to yet another bowl, and microwave on high for 30 seconds.  as far as i can tell, the microwaving is intended to help the craisins absorb a little of the juice.  also, i have no idea why orange juice and cranberries play so nicely together in recipes...but why ocean spray fails to have an orange-cranberry juice.  one of the mysteries in life, i suppose.

start adding the pecans, chocolate, and craisins.  once the batter is thoroughly mixed, spoon it into a 9x13 pan (pre-greased with cooking spray) and spread it out evenly.  bake at 350°F for 25 minutes (it should be a light golden brown).  wait until it cools before cutting into bars.

verdict:
i was somehow expecting the consistency to be somewhat akin to a chewy oatmeal cookie, but these bars were closer to a brownie or a poundcake.  they're a little crumbly, but the orange juice seems to keep them at least a little moist.  i'm glad i added more than the specified amount of pecans and craisins, but i think i should have added even more chocolate bits.

also, i don't think this is quite as healthy as the kraft website claims...but it still tastes nice!