Strawberry Oatmeal Crumb Bars
ShareThe perfect crunchy base, strawberry filling and crumb topping to create a sweet dessert bar for Spring and Summer gatherings.
You know what I hate? And I don’t mean just dislike a little but all out loathe? Spiders. Okay, not just spiders but all creepy crawlies and other biting insects. Okay, maybe most insects in general minus ladybugs because they’re only annoying when they fly around a lightbulb making me think they’re a bee and cause me to have a temporary freak out moment. You know you do the same. And how about dragonflies and butterflies – they’re okay in my book too. But spiders and mosquitos are on the bad list.
Prior to the heat last weekend, we installed our air conditioners. I don’t know if it’s all coincidence or not and I don’t know what to blame but… the hubs and I have been bug snack for the past week. Just call me Itchy Ichabod (Dr Seuss reference for those not in the know). Was it the air conditioners that happened to be stored in the attic over the winter? Was it the deck furniture with super itty bitty bugs we can’t even see, munching away on us? I mean, I suppose it’s possible – right? As freaky as that thought is. I haven’t seen a mosquito in a while because we sprayed the yard and by we I mean the Mr… so I can’t really blame mosquitos but I still don’t like them. I just want to stop itching.
Oh and let’s not forget the spider I might have squished earlier today. Not the un-scary daddy long legs kind but the freaky totally biting kind. Yep.
Now something I love and am kind of completely obsessed with lately, as you may or may not have noticed… strawberries. I decided they needed to be the star attraction of a delicious bar. They’re pretty much perfect. You don’t want a bar that is ridiculously over powering in the flavor department. These are light and refreshing while still offering a nice pop of sweet flavor from the strawberry filling.
The best part is that these have actual strawberry pieces, not jam. Real, fresh strawberry pieces – sprinkled with sugar and baked between layers of crust. It’s magical how the strawberries soften and create a delicious center.
My little man couldn’t get enough of these. Clearly he’s a huge strawberry fan too. And if you are, then you absolutely need these in your life. I promise these are seriously easy to make, so you must make them.
PS tonight is question night over on the Baked by Rachel Facebook page! One hour of fun foodie questions. Join me from 8-9pm eastern time. I’d love to see you there!
Looking for more refreshing recipes? Try these:
Lemon shortbread tartlets
Roasted strawberry ice cream
Mini lemon-lime cheesecakes
Skillet cherry peach pies
Raspberry sherbet
Cherry fruit leather
Lemon blueberry muffins
Charlotte Chantilly
Cream puffs and eclairs
Apple cinnamon pop tarts with caramel icing
Strawberry Oatmeal Crumb Bars
Ingredients
For the base and topping:
- 1 1/2 C all purpose flour
- 1/2 C granulated sugar
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 3/4 C old fashioned oats
- 1/2 C cold unsalted butter cubed
- 1 egg white
For the filling:
- 1 1/2-2 C strawberries hulled and quartered
- 1/4 C granulated sugar
- 1 Tbsp cornstarch
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Lightly grease an 8x8 baking pan. Line with parchment paper.
- Add base ingredients to a medium bowl. Using a pastry cutter (or a pair of forks), work the ingredients until the butter is no larger than pea sized and the mixture is crumbly. Reserve 3/4 cup to use as topping. Press remaining mixture to the bottom of the prepared baking pan, creating an even layer.
- Combine strawberries, sugar and cornstarch in a medium bowl. Toss until strawberries have absorbed the sugar. Spread our strawberry mixture evenly over prepared crust. Crumble topping over strawberries.
- Bake for 45 minutes or until crumb topping is light golden. Cool in pan for 5-10 minutes. Carefully lift dessert from the pan by grabbing the edges of the parchment paper. Cut into squares, enjoy. Store remaining squares in an airtight container for up to several days.
Notes
I’m making these tomorrow!
I hope you do! Let me know what you think.
Oh yum!! Strawberries are one of my favorite summer fruits! These bars are so pretty and I bet delicious! I love that crumb topping!
Oh and how fun to do a live Q&A. What a great idea!
Remember to join in ;)
I can’t get enough of summer berries, especially strawberries. I need to make these!
loving those actual strawberry bits!
So much better than a jam filling! :)
These look SO scrumptious, and I love how easy they are! Such a great, summery dessert for parties and snacking!
They really are perfect for entertaining! Not too messy either.
Seriously Spidies? Leave Rachel alone!! I wouldn’t be able to leave these strawberry bars alone, so it’s best that they are a long way away from me right now…
haha! Lil man would’ve fought you for them ;)
I love that these bars use real fruit…not jam. That’s the way I like it! These look absolutely delicious. I hate spiders, too, BTW. I’ve been traumatized by Wolf spiders no less. They’re seriously scary.
pieces of fruit is so much more enjoyable for something like this! Let’s not mention wolf spiders… they freak me out too.
Gah we have spiders all over here too! I cant stand them!! And they rear up too, so Im thinking they are aggressive. Definitely not a fan! But I am digging all these strawberry treats you ladies are tempting me with ;)
We shouldn’t be scared of such little bugs but man they really do give me the heebie jeebies
Yum, how good do these look?! So delicious, and the perfect use of the abundant strawberries in CA right now! Definitely need to try these!!
I want all of the gorgeous CA strawberries! All of our berries are shipped in right now and they don’t last long enough.
These sound and looks great.. Would be a hit in our house!!
Spiders yuck. Strawberry oatmeal crumb bars yum!
Eww spiders. My kids FREAKED out the other night because the world’s tiniest daddy long legs was on their ceiling. I don’t mind those. But the big, fat, black ones? Those are the things nightmares are made of. We don’t really get mosquitoes here but I definitely don’t miss them!
Love these bars! I’ve got 3 or 4 containers of strawberries in the fridge so I’ve been searching for recipes like this!
Your boys would gobble these bars up ;) I don’t mind daddy long legs either so much – they’re basically harmless and they’re practically nonexistent that I don’t mind but they still aren’t allowed to take up residence here.
I can’t handle spiders. I saw one in our laundry room and then I lost it. Now I’m convinced it made it into a laundry basket. And then made its way upstairs. And is lurking in a piece of clothing somewhere. I’m tempted to buy a whole new wardrobe for us all. omggggggggggggggggggggg
Love all things strawberry! Cannot wait until it is strawberry picking season around here!
Spiders suck!! They are totes annoying. I’m loving these crumb bars! Gorgeous!
these look amazing girl!
Thanks so much Alison! :)
These bars are right up my alley! Love!
i love crumb bars especially this one since well, i love strawberries and i’ve got a ton in the fridge right now! you and i are so on the same wavelength all the time with same ingredient posts ;)…so i probably would not be able to be in your house during this buggy time since i’m terrified of bugs and spiders!
It’s way safer inside than outside… most days ;) Okay always but we have our bug days and I’m definitely not a fan.
I hate spiders too! Thank God my hubby is in pest control! :) I am totally drooling over these bars. If I can keep my kids hands off invading the strawberries in the refrigerator I definitely have to try these. :)
I can’t get enough of crumb bars lately and these look delicious! Definitely saving this one for when strawberries are in season here. I love those strawberry pieces, it all looks so good!
These look fabulous! I love how they have real big chunks of strawberries in them as well–I’ll still waiting for all the great strawberries to arrive near me (although I did get one big pint from the farmer’s market a few weeks ago that were amazing).
I get paranoid when I know mosquitoes are flying around!! They LOVE me.
dying! seriously love love love crumb bars Rachel. And especially strawberry (!!!). I have a pound of strawbs in the fridge to gobble up (or bake with!!) :)
Just made these Rachel! Really yummy and full of strawberry flavor. I had to put them in for longer for the top to brown, and the bars are a little too liquid. But all in all, a really great recipe,and one that I would definitely make again. Thanks!
Straight out of the oven they are more juicy than after they’ve had a chance to sit. The longer they sit and cool, the more congealed they become. However, all berries are different too so if you had super juicy fruit that could also play a role.
These are really good! I baked them in my toaster oven and they were done in just over 30 min. So attractive too.
Crumb bars are the best thing ever and strawberry is definitely my favorite filling!!
I hate spiders but the ones that really get to me are the jumping spider crickets. They are so hard to catch and basically scare the crap out of me. One time one fell out of the attic while Jeff was opening it and now I always think a spider is going to fall on me. Shudder.
Love the bars!
I totally agree on the spiders. I HATE the squishy ones. The ones that will make a mess if you step on them. Ugh! I do love the looks of these strawberry bars, though. Can’t wait for strawberry season!
The mosquitoes here are ridiculous this year! Such a rainy Spring we’ve been having.
Your strawberry oatmeal bars are just the ticket to take my mind off my own itchy bug-bitten riddled body :)
I’m totally going to keep the hubs on top of spraying the yard to keep the biting bugs at bay. It helps a great deal but not so much if we venture outside of that zone.
I hate spiders! I usually just trap them under a bowl and save them for my husband ;)
These bars look absolutely amazing, love it!
These strawberry bars are absolutely awesome! They are very quick to put together with no fuss at all! I doubled the recipe and cooked them in a 9×13 pan and they were perfect! Thanks!
So glad to hear you enjoyed it!
I made these last week with my kids. They loved making the crumb and chopping the strawberries. However, they hated them. Every adult that has tried them absolutely loves them and can’t believe that my kids won’t eat them. Maybe they’re just weird. The first day I made them, I must’ve eaten three right on the spot they’re so delicious.
That’s too funny! My kids are the same way sometimes. So glad the adults all enjoyed them :)
I just made these. I’ve been craving something fruity and sweet but on the lighter side and these turned out amazing. I ended up using 2.5 cups of blueberries that I had frozen in my freezer and I added a bit of cinnamon and vanilla to the mixture. I also used half a cup of whole wheat flour instead of 1.5 cups all purpose flour and I don’t taste any difference. I’m totally going to make these on a regular basis. Trying to lose that last 20 pounds is really hard especially when you really love sweets and candy.
I’m glad to hear you enjoyed them :) And I totally agree – sweets definitely make that very hard! Good luck!!
I made these and shared with a friend and her family, they’re delicious! She asked for the recipe, I shared. Thank you for sharing.
So glad to hear everyone enjoyed it! Thanks for sharing :)
Has anyone tried freezing these after baking? They look delicious.
I love this recipe! I have made it exactly as written, with strawberry and rhubarb, and with tart cherries. All were delicious! I love that the bottom crust comes our crunchy, and the top soft. It is so easy too.
And I have frozen these and the bottoms get slightly soft, but otherwise they were great!
So glad you enjoyed them! Love your changes for other flavors too :) Thanks for sharing!
Should the bars be stored in the refrigerator??
It’s personal preference on how they’re stored. Some may prefer them chilled while others may prefer room temperature. Since there is no dairy, if they are enjoyed in a reasonable time, they should be okay at room temperature.
These look amazing! Would they work with frozen strawberries?
I imagine they would work just fine, so long as you thaw them prior to baking.