Strawberry Rhubarb Crumb Bars
Strawberry rhubarb crumb bars are the perfect treat for spring!
I am one of those people who stores thirty pounds of butter in her freezer and isn’t one bit ashamed to admit it.
(When you bake as much as I do, you have to stock up when the good stuff goes on sale, like Challenge Butter.)
Real, quality butter is an absolute daily part of my life, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. It yields the best flavor in cakes, it’s the shining star of cookies, and it makes the flakiest pie crusts. And I don’t use it just for baking, it’s always within arm’s reach when I’m cooking too. Let’s face it, butter makes just about everything better.
Like these crumb bars! There’s a simple crumb mixture made mostly of flour, sugar, and butter baked around a filling of fresh strawberries and rhubarb. Slice ’em up and let’s celebrate the return of spring and berry season.
Think strawberry rhubarb pie, except easier, and that’s what you get with these crumb bars. They’re soft on the inside and crispy on top, sweet yet slightly tangy, and altogether completely scrumptious. Plus, they’re perfect for taking on the road, like to a picnic or potluck. Show up with these and your friends and family will love you forever!
They don’t need to know how simple these strawberry rhubarb crumb bars are to throw together, it’ll be our little secret. All they will care about is if there’s enough for seconds.
baking tip:When to bake with salted butter vs. unsalted butter
Conventional baking wisdom says to use unsalted butter because you have more control over the amount of salt in a recipe, and salt amounts in salted butter vary from brand to brand. It’s like a blank slate!
While this may be true, I have personally found that salted butter works just fine without a noticeable difference most of the time. In fact I actually prefer to use it in recipes where I want a little oomph of extra flavor and sweet and salty-ness— like cookies, caramel and rice krispie treats.
The bottom line? Use what you already have! And if you’re unsure about using salted butter in a recipe that specifically requires unsalted butter, play it safe and reduce the salt amount in the recipe by one half if you like.
Strawberry Rhubarb Crumb Bars
Ingredients
Crumb base and topping:
- 3 cups all-purpose flour (360 grams)
- ¼ cup granulated sugar (50 grams)
- ½ cup packed light or dark brown sugar (105 grams)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon coarse salt
- Zest from 1 orange , optional
- 1 cup Challenge unsalted butter , cold and cubed (226 grams, 2 sticks)
- 1 large egg , lightly beaten
Filling:
- 3 cups sliced strawberries (395 grams)
- 2 cups sliced rhubarb (260 grams)
- 4 teaspoons cornstarch
- ½ cup granulated sugar (100 grams)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a 9x13 inch baking dish and line with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, brown sugar, baking powder, salt and orange zest. Add the butter and use a fork or a pastry blender to cut the butter into the dry ingredients until the pieces are about the size of peas. Add the beaten egg and continue to blend until combined and mixture can be clumped together with your hand. Press half of the crumb mixture evenly into the bottom of the prepared pan.
- In another bowl, toss together the strawberries, rhubarb, cornstarch and sugar. Dump on top of the crumb base, spreading it out evenly as needed. Use your hands to clump the remaining crumb mixture together and sprinkle evenly over the strawberry rhubarb filling.
- Bake until topping is golden brown and the fruit is bubbling, about 50-60 minutes. Let cool completely before slicing, about 2-3 hours at room temperature or about 1 hour in the fridge. For best results, store in the fridge, up to 5 days.
Notes
- Orange zest is an optional ingredient, but I love the added flavor it gives these crumb bars.
- For best results, chop strawberries and rhubarb into 1/2-inch pieces.
- If using frozen rhubarb, do not thaw before using.
Made this twice today. I used my stand mixer (instead of a fork or pastry blender) and I have to say my crust was a little too dry/sandy – likely overworked – so don’t make my mistake. Mine does not look like her beautiful picture, haha. The fruit center does taste wonderful.
I have made this few times and love it. I wondered, as we have a glut of fruit, could I make it and then freeze it before baking?
Want to try this recipe as it looks very good, but can we freeze the bars?
Yes, these bars freeze very well.
I have made these bars multiple times, and they have rapidly become my favorites!!
The added orange rind to the crumble is worth it! It added another level of flavor. I wouldn’t recommend using frozen rhubarb though. We freeze ours from the garden, and it definitely needs to be thawed, drained, and patted dry. Delicious!