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Ingredients:
For the crumble
2 cups old fashion oats
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 sticks (1 cup) cold salted butter, cubed
For the raspberry filling
2 1/2 cups fresh raspberries
2-4 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 teaspoons lemon zest
1/2 cup raspberry jam
1 ripe but firm peach, thinly sliced
Instructions:
Begin by preheating the oven to 35o degrees. Then prepare a baking dish, I use a standard 9×13 inch one, by lining it with parchment paper or you can oil the dish as well.
To start making the crumble, use a food processor to pulse together the oats, flour, brown sugar, baking powder and cinnamon. Pulse them all together until the oats are mostly ground. If you don’t have a food processor, you can also use a blender. If your blender is a little small, you may have to blend it in batches. You can also mix the ingredients by hand; the texture may just be a little different.
Once the dry ingredients are mixed together, mix it with the butter until a crumbly dough forms. If the dough seems dry, you can add a tablespoon of water to add moisture.
Once the dough is made, press 1/3 of it onto the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Then bake it in the oven for approximately 10 minutes or until it is slightly golden.
While the first layer of the dough is baking, begin making the filling. In a medium bowl, toss the raspberries with the sugar, flour, vanilla and lemon zest. Then, spread the berries out in an even layer over the baked crust. Then add dollops of the raspberry jam over the berries. Next, add the peach slices in a single layer.
Finally, sprinkle the remaining crumble over top the fruit and place it in the oven to bake for 30-40 minutes or until the crumble is a light golden brown and the berries have burst.
Once removed from the oven, allow it to cool before cutting the bars.
Slice into squares and enjoy!
Commentary:
I found this recipe on halfbakedharvest and once I made it, I instantly loved the bars. These are great for breakfast on the go, or as an afternoon snack. You could also eat the bar with vanilla ice cream as a dessert.
As Spring and better weather is starting to come around, I love making desserts with fruit. This recipe calls for raspberries, but you can use any other berries you may like or are in season. Blackberries, blueberries or strawberries (or even a mix) would all be great for a crumble bar.
With the berries, you can also use frozen berries instead of fresh but be sure to thaw the berries out and let the excess moisture drain out to ensure the bars don’t get soggy.
These bars can be stored for up to one week in a stored container.