Shiggy pretty much has it covered for drop bars on an off-road bike.

I race cyclocross and put On-One's Midge bar in place of the standard drops. In addition to racing cyclocross, I also take my CX bike out on the same trails as I used to ride my MTB. The Midge is quite a bit wider than a conventional drop bar.

I can say that the Midge bar beats the tar out of a conventional straight bar with bar ends. The key adjustment to make is to get a high-rise stem. You can't just put a drop bar in your existing stem. You'll wind up leaning too far forward and that will make you feel less secure.

When you've got your drops set up right-- riding in the drops/hooks is an incredibly secure feeling.

That said, I'm switching my MTB over to drops-- Midge, natch.