Lemon Poppyseed Streusel Bars with Strawberry-Lemon Yogurt Filling

My so-sweet Abiline is approaching two years of age and has turned into the tantrum monster. Every day this past week I have been caught off guard by yet another raging blow out.  Given her performance the last few days, I am not sure why I deluded myself into thinking that running errands with the kids this morning was a good plan. I made the mistake of taking them to Ikea to get a new, higher bathroom stool so that Sawyer can wash his hands by himself.  It seemed so simple, but the task was complicated by the incessant squabbling, hitting, whining, and then me clutching to my cool while seething through my teeth.  In the future, when I have to put my child[ren] in time out as we are leaving for an outing, I should probably reconsider even going.  Or is that too drastic?  I need to be able to get things done, but today I just had one too many days of being the public spectacle interrupting the tranquility of everyone's shopping trips. Why is it that everyone else's kids always seem so mellow? Ugh. And I still have to do the grocery shopping today after nap-time....

I suppose every day is a struggle in its own way, and I can either get all sour about it, or make lemonade.  I have tried going to the store by myself after the kids go to bed at night, and you know what? I usually feel lonely; I don't like it anymore than when I tackle the job with my two bundles of loveable chaos. So what is the key to an enjoyable shopping trip? Not well-behaved children, or no children--just patience, I think. Oh how I wish I had more of it!

But on to the recipe, perfect for a day when I am trying to make lemonade out of this lemon of a morning!

 

For the lemon-poppy seed crust/streusel:
2 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup oat bran (Or more rolled oats. I have not seen gluten-free oat bran, so using more GF oats may be your best bet if you're going for a GF treat.)
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. sea salt
3 Tbsp. poppy seeds
zest of 2 lemons
juice of 1 lemon
1/4 cup coconut oil
1/4 c. agave nectar or maple syrup
1 tsp. lemon extract

For the strawberry-lemon yogurt filling:
1 1/2 c. plain non-dairy yogurt (I used homemade.)
3-4 strawberries
1-2 Tbsp. sweetener of choice, or stevia to taste
juice of 1 lemon
1/2 tsp. lemon extract
3/4 tsp. guar gum (optional, for thicker filling)

1. Preheat oven to 350 and oil a nine inch square pan.
2. In your food processor, grind the rolled oats into flour. Add the oat bran, baking powder, and salt and pulse to combine. Add poppy seeds and lemon zest and pulse a few times to mix them in to the rest of the dry ingredients. Then add the oil, agave, and lemon juice, and pulse again until the mixture is crumbly and evenly moistened.
3. Press 1/2 of the dough into the bottom of the prepared pan, and reserve the other 1/2 in a bowl. Clean out the food processor work bowl and add the filling ingredients; blend until smooth and then spoon the yogurt filling evenly over the bottom crust.
4. Sprinkle the remaining streusel evenly over the filling. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 mins. Let the bars cool completely before cutting, or else they will be messy.  

Yes, this was another tumultuous outing--what made us ever think that the kids would ride quietly in a bike trailer together? Luckily, we still have a baby seat on my bike, so we can separate them when things get ugly back there. 

 

This post is linked to Allergy-Friendly Fridays, Fit and Fabulous Fridays , My Meatless Mondays,  Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays , Allergy-Free Wednesdays, Whole Foods Wednesdays, and Wellness Weekend.