Oatmeal Fig Bars

Preheat oven to 350ºF and liberally grease a 9 x 13 pan with softened butter or shortening. Put the butter into a sauce pan and heat it over medium heat. Let it bubble and cook for 3–5 minutes just until it becomes brown. Set it aside to cool. Combine the oat flour, oats, wheat germ, cinnamon and salt in a bowl. Whisk it all together to aerate those dry ingredients and set them aside.

Set up a stand mixer with the paddle attachment. Combine the brown sugar and cooled brown butter in its bowl and beat them together until fluffy. Add the vanilla next, followed by the egg, letting them get mixed in. Then turn the speed to low and slowly add the dry ingredients until you have a sticky dough. Divide the dough in half and press the first half into the bottom of the pan evenly to form a thin bottom layer. Spoon the fig jam over the bottom layer and spread it out to become an even second layer. Take the second half of dough and crumble it in an even layer on top of the fig jam.

Bake the bars for 35–40 minutes, until the dough is completely baked through and almost crispy around the edges. Let the bars completely cool for at least an hour. Then cut and serve immediately!