Strawberry Oatmeal Crumb Bars
A buttery crust and crumble topping sandwich a jammy filling made from fresh strawberries in this easy strawberry oatmeal crumb bar recipe. These bars are perfect for a laid-back summer dessert!
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Chill Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes (up to 35 minutes)
- Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
- Yield: 12 bars 1x
- Category: dessert bars
- Method: baking
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
Scale
Strawberry Filling
- 1 lb 4 ounces (4 cups) chopped fresh strawberries
- 2 5/8 ounces (1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons) granulated sugar
- 1 1/8 ounces (1/4 cup) corn starch
- 4 tablespoons water
Oatmeal Crust and Crumb Topping
- 9 1/4 ounces (2 cups plus 3 tablespoons) flour, divided (see recipe notes for flour options)
- 3 5/8 ounces (1 1/4 cups) old-fashioned rolled oats, divided
- 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 5 1/2 ounces (2/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon, packed) brown sugar, divided
- 4 ounces (1/2 cup) coconut oil, melted and briefly cooled
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- coarse/raw sugar, for sprinkling (optional)
Instructions
Strawberry Filling
- Cook the berries: Stir strawberries and sugar together in a medium saucepan. Set over medium heat and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat.
- Make a slurry: In a small bowl, whisk together corn starch and water until smooth. Slowly pour into strawberry mixture while stirring.
- Boil: Return strawberries to stovetop on medium heat and bring to a sluggish boil. Boil for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature, at least 30 minutes.
Oatmeal Crust and Crumb Topping:
- Oven and pan prep: Preheat oven to 375ºF. Line an 8" square pan with parchment paper, or foil greased with non-stick cooking spray.
- Mix dry ingredients: In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together 8 1/2 ounces (2 cups) flour, 2 7/8 ounces (1 cup) oats, baking soda, and salt.
- Mix wet ingredients: In a separate bowl, combine 5 ounces (2/3 cup) brown sugar, coconut oil, egg, and vanilla and whisk until smooth.
- Combine: Fold wet ingredients into dry just until evenly incorporated. Set aside 7 1/4 ounces (3/4 cup) batter and press the remaining batter into the bottom of the prepared pan in an even, compact layer using a flat spatula.
- Make the crumble: Add the remaining 3/4 ounce (3 tablespoons) flour, 3/4 ounce (1/4 cup) oats, and 1/2 ounce (1 tablespoon) brown sugar to the reserved batter, rubbing everything in with your fingertips until evenly combined and crumbly.
- Layer into pan: Use an offset spatula to spread the strawberry filling evenly over the crust in the prepared pan. Scatter the crumb mixture evenly on top so that the filling is mostly covered. Sprinkle topping with coarse sugar if desired.
- Bake: Bake bars in preheated oven for 30-35 minutes, until filling is bubbling and crumble is beginning to turn golden. Cool in pan completely, and then use parchment/foil to lift bars out of pan before slicing.
Notes
Ingredients Notes and Substitutions:
- Strawberries can mostly likely be substituted with another berry (or berry mixture). If using blueberries, you may only need to simmer them for 7-8 minutes in step one. Frozen berries should work as well; defrost them and strain out excess water before using.
- Whole wheat flour or gluten-free all-purpose flour can be used. If using gluten-free flour, make sure the blend you use contains xanthan gum or guar gum. Regular flour should work as well, but you may need to add an extra tablespoon to the crumb topping if it seems overly wet or sticky.
- If you don't have coconut oil on hand, try subbing it with melted, unsalted butter.
Storage and Shelf Life:
- Bars should be kept in an airtight container in the refrigerator, and should stay fresh for 5-7 days.
