Creamy lemon oat bars

These creamy lemon oat bars were god-like. Sinking your teeth into soft, chewy baked condensed milk topped with crumbly oats on a moody Monday morning might just send the blues away. You do see some burnt milk, no? It tasted like caramel. My only grouse was that there wasn’t enough condensed milk. The bars were sweet enough, (and maybe even too sweet for Asian palate) but would you say no to a thicker layer of creamy goodness? The recipe called for one can, but I never knew the cans in Singapore were slightly smaller. I’m usually skeptical about bars (they’re not the easiest thing to digest), but hey, I’m sure the oats will save the day no?

Here’s heaven sandwiched between 2 healthy layers of oats! A friend even suggested having condensed milk as a bread spread. I used to have chilled condensed milk with macaroni when I was young, hmmm. If you’re a die-hard fan of PB and condensed milk, you’ll have to try the thick toasts at the Hong Kong cafes!

Alright, so there goes my baking session for the week, time to hit the books! Oh, and did I mention that VJ soccer girls won national champion?! Yeeha!

Creamy lemon oat bars, recipe adapted from Simply Daily Recipes

• 1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk
• 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1 1/4 cups flour
• 1 cup old fashioned oats
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar ( I used 2 T less)
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Heat oven to 375ºF/ 190ºC. Coat 8×8 inch pan with non-stick cooking spray. Mix milk, lemon zest and lemon juice in medium bowl until thickened; set aside. Mix remaining ingredients in medium bowl until crumbly.

Press half of the crumbly mixture in pan; bake about 10 minutes or until set.

Spread lemon milk mixture over baked crust. Sprinkle remaining crumbly mixture over the lemon milk mixture, press down gently. Bake about 20 minutes or until edges are golden brown and center is set but soft. Cool completely. Cut 4 rows by 4 rows.