Cranberry Orange Nut Bars

Cranberry Orange Nut Bars

Ingredients:
wheat flour, white, all-purpose, unenriched
leavening agents, baking powder, double-acting, sodium aluminum sulfate
leavening agents, baking soda
salt, table
nuts, walnuts, english
cranberries, dried, sweetened
sugars, granulated
applesauce, canned, unsweetened, without added ascorbic acid (includes usda commodity)
oil, canola
orange juice, raw
orange juice, raw

Directions:
Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl.
Stir in walnuts and dried cranberries.
Whisk 1 cup sugar, applesauce, oil, orange zest and juice in a medium bowl until smooth.
Make a well in the dry ingredients and pour in the wet ingredients.
Mix until well blended.
Chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9x13 pan with nonstick cooking spray (I prefer the kind with flour in it).
Remove dough from the refrigerator and press firmly into the pan.
Dough will be very sticky; use a piece of parchment or waxed paper to press it down evenly.
Sprinkle the remaining 2 tablespoons sugar evenly over the top of the pressed dough.
Bake the bars until lightly golden brown, approximately 25 minutes.
Cool completely in the pan before cutting into 15 servings.