Apricot Bars

These fruity bars submitted by Rita Burk ranked high on our judges' list, though many of them weren't fond of the coconut. One called it an "easy recipe but a good end result."

Apricot Bars

3/4 cup of margarine (room temperature)

1 cup of sugar

1 egg

1 1/2 tsp. of vanilla

1/2 tsp. of salt

2 cups of flour

1 1/2 cups of shredded coconut

8 oz. jar of Apricot Preserves

1 cup of chopped walnuts

Cream, margarine, sugar, egg and vanilla. Mix in salt, flour and coconut and stir well. Reserve 3/4 cup of the dough for topping. Spread the rest in a greased 7-by-11 inch pan. Spread apricot preserves over mixture. Sprinkle nuts over preserves and crumble reserved dough over the top. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.