Heirloom Food

My grandpa's funeral is this week. He lived 93 full and interesting years and it was his time to pass. However, I feel like I've lost a valuable link to history - he was born during World War I, grew up during the depression, joined the Navy during WWII... it is astonishing to consider the events and eras he lived though.

I can't experience life the way my grandparents lived when they were my age, so I really enjoy making recipes that they ate, enabling me to both smell and taste some history. This is a recipe my grandma made, and everyone who tries it loves it. So put on your fabulous 50's dress, pearls, and heels and whip some up for yourself!

OATMEAL CARMELLETES

Caramel Filling

32 caramels
5 Tablespoons light cream or evaporated milk (or regular milk, or heavy cream)

Melt the caramels and milk together. If you use a pan on the stove, stir constantly. If you use a microwave, stir every two minutes at first, and then every minute until caramels are melted.

Bars

1 cup flour
1 cup oatmeal
¾ cup brown sugar
¾ cup melted butter
½ tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp. salt

1 cup chocolate chips

Mix together flour, oatmeal, brown sugar, butter, soda and salt and divide in half. Press half into bottom of 9x9 pan. Bake 10 minutes at 350F. Remove from oven; immediately sprinkle 1 cup chocolate chips on hot crust. Drizzle caramel filling over chips; cover with remaining oatmeal mixture. Bake 15-20 minutes at 325F. Allow to cool before cutting.

BONUS: for a quick and tasty dessert, you can pour a can of cherry, blueberry OR apple pie filling OR put fresh apples, peeled, cored, sliced, and shaken with 1/4 cup flour in a 9x9 pan. Shake some cinnamon sugar over the fruit and top with the bar mixture. Bake at 350F for about 25-30 minutes and voila – apple/cherry/blueberry crisp! I serve it hot with ice cream. (Obviously, you leave out the chocolate and caramels)

P.S. - S. Mehrens - I promise I prepared for this post before I saw your post! I guess it is Grandparents Week here at Cooking! Everyone else, did you have a favorite recipe from a grandparent?