Mine didn't turn out quite as pretty as the picture but my family loved them! They said it reminded them of strawberry newtons. After a couple days they get very crumbly.

Mine didn't turn out quite as pretty as the picture, and it was pretty dry... but still yummy! I want to make it again but i'm not sure how to fix the dryness problem...

Awesome! I took these to my daughter's preschool class and one of her teachers asked for the recipe. :) I used half-dark brown sugar and half-light brown, and I used ½ cup of regular Crisco shortening plus 1/4 cup softened margarine. I also mixed the water in at the same time as the oats, it came together fast. If your preserves or jam (I used Smucker's Strawberry Jam) are a little clumpy and doesn't want to spread, just pop them in the microwave for 20 seconds or so. It'll make it easier to spread them over the base. Oh, and lastly, I just sort of crumbled-and-pressed the topping part over the jam, I didn't arrange the dough over top. Very good bars!

This is so easy & wonderful, my very picky 2 1/2 year old and 4 year old both loved them when I made for my 2 1/2 year olds preschool. The teacher requested the recipe immediately. Thank you very much for the great recipe!!!

I followed this recipe exactly, only used whole wheat flour instead of white. Seemed to have a lot more peanut butter/oat mixture than jelly so it was a little dry. But very tasty and my kids loved them. Will make again--probably add more water next time.