Strawberry Crumb Bars

Last month I made the chocolate caramel slice bars from  donna hay magazine.  What a disaster.  I did everything that was asked of me, hence it wasn’t enough.  The caramel filling didn’t set and the parchment paper that lined the baking dish was one big sloppy mess ( didn’t stop my friend Kate from eating around the edges, licking her fingers – oohing and awwing the whole time ).

I have decided to give her bars another go around.  I opted to go with something somewhat safe.  She has a recipe for rhubarb crumble slice.  I didn’t have any rhubarb on hand, but I did have strawberries.  So instead, I made strawberry crumble bars.

They were well received.  Thank goodness! I do not do well with kitchen disasters.  I take it all very, very personal.  I needed these to be a winner!  And they were.

Strawberry Crumble Bars


Ingredients

shortbread crust
1/3 (75g) caster sugar
1 1/2 (225g) cups all-purpose flour, sifted
1/2 tsp. baking powder, sifted
1 egg, lightly beaten
100g unsalted butter, melted

strawberry filling
450g strawberries, hulled + chopped
3/4 cup (165g) caster sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract

crumble topping
1 1/2 cups (225g) all-purpose flour, sifted
1/3 cup (75g) caster sugar
150g cold butter, chopped

Instructions

• preheat oven to 350*.  lightly grease an 9 x 12″ baking dish.  line with parchment paper and butter the paper.
for the shortbread crust:
• place the sugar, flour, baking powder, egg and butter in a bowl and mix to combine.
• press into your prepared pan.  bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden and firm.
strawberry filling:
• toss the strawberries, sugar, and vanilla.  set aside
for the topping:
• place the flour, sugar and butter in a large bowl and mix to combine.  the mixture should resemble coarse bread crumbs.
• spoon the strawberries over the cooked base and top with the crumble topping.
• bake 35-40 minutes or until golden.  cut into 2″ squares!  dust with a little confectioner’s sugar!

The Urban Baker / SusanSalzman.com

Showing 9 comments
  • Sally Pasley Vargas
    Reply

    I need a little dessert to take to a friend’s this weekend. I am going to give these a whirl. I like your use of strawberries: the caramel sounds uber-sweet, so maybe it was a good thing the recipe didn’t work out cuz it brought you to this version. Living dangerously as I do (with cooking, at least) I will try these with raspberries left from my picking excursion, maybe thickened with a little cornstarch since they are very runny and you had the problem with the caramel? Worth a try. Thanks so much.

  • Jackie
    Reply

    These look yummy! For those of us who are very “novice” bakers and follow your blog because everything looks so good and you make it so easy – what the heck is caster sugar and where can I buy it? Thanks!

  • The Urban Baker
    Reply

    Jackie – caster sugar is super fine sugar. They sell super fine sugar in the stores, but you don’t need another box on your shelf! Just throw a few cups in your food processor and process the heck out of it. I store it in a jar and use it when needed!

  • The Urban Baker
    Reply

    Sally, raspberries sound wonderful! I am so anxious to hear how they turn out! I am sure it will be yummy!

  • Carolyn
    Reply

    These look and sound great, I do love fruit fillings in a crumble bar. Sorry the caramel bars were a mess (although I probably would have been like your friend, nibbling and licking bits of it anyway!).

  • jocelyn
    Reply

    can’t wait to try these. it is good to know that you are human and that you can have a kitchen “disaster” as well. so sorry. i know how those feel. as usual you have redeemed yourself.

  • Angie's Recipes
    Reply

    I have some blue berries in the freezer and this would be a perfect recipe to try.

  • Ellie (Almost Bourdain)
    Reply

    I love crumby bars. Love to try this recipe soon. Thanks for sharing.

  • Dimah
    Reply

    These sound and look awesome! Thanks for sharing.

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