You cannot go wrong with these easy to make blackberry crumb bars. Made with a shortcake like crust and topped with a crumble these treats make for a great dessert especially served warm with ice cream.
I cannot get enough of blackberries and this easy to make recipe is perfect treat to grab and go. When you don’t want a heavy dessert or you want a small treat mid afternoon these are a great for both. You can serve them warm with a nice huge scoop of ice cream or pack them in your little one’s lunch for a nice treat and surprise. These crumbly bars will melt in your mouth.
In this recipe
There are only two major components to this recipe, the blackberry filling and the crust. The crust will serve as the bottom and topping to the bars.
Blackberries: make sure that you use fresh blackberries that are sliced in half.
Lemon Zest: will add some brightness to the blackberries enhance the flavor.
Baking powder: helps to keep the crust and crumble light and soft.
Almond flour: adds a subtle almond flavor without having to add any extract.
A crumbly crust
One of the good things about this crust is that you can use it as both the topping and the structure of the bars. This is done by making sure that the mixture is crumbly and not over mixed. When you start with the flour mixture you want to make sure that your butter is very cold. If you are using a food processor then you can use frozen butter. Make sure the butter is pea or pebble sized and not smaller. This should only take a few seconds to make work.
Instead of using water, like you would for a pastry dough, you will use an egg which will bind the mixture together. You don’t want to add any additional liquid to the batter like milk or water. It will feel a little dry and crumbly and that is exactly what you want. When it cooks the butter will melt and give a light buttery texture similar to shortbread. Firmly pack down 2/3 of the mixture in the bottom of the baking dish to maintain the structure.
A quick filling
This filling only takes seconds to throw together once the ingredients have been prepped. When you combine all of the ingredients you want to make sure that the cornstarch coats all of the berries and it doesn’t clump. This will help keep all of the juice from soaking through to the bottom of bars. If a little seeps through that is ok but you want to avoid too much dripping down and making the bars really sticky. By packing the crust well you can help prevent this as well.
Slicing the blackberry crumb bars
The first and most important thing is to make sure that the dish is completely cool. Personally I like to toss it in the refrigerator for a few hours. This will also help when you want to slice as the bars will not immediately break apart. Once you have them all sliced if you want to keep them for longer place them flat in a freezer bag and they will last for up to 3 months.
Looking for other blackberry recipes?
Easy Blackberry Crumb Bars
Equipment
- 8 x 8 inch baking dish
- Mixing Bowl
- Food processor or pastry blender
Ingredients
Crust and crumble
- 1¼ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup butter unsalted, very cold
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup almond flour
- 1 egg beaten
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Blackberry filling
- 2 cups blackberries halved
- ½ cup brown sugar packed
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F, 190°C, or gas mark 5. Line the inside of the 8 x 8 inch baking pan with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, combine the sugar, flour, almond flour, baking powder and salt.
- Add the flour mixture to a food processor, add the butter and blend until the butter is the size of pebbles. Work with the dough until the pieces are very small. The dough will be crumbly.
- Beat the eggs and vanilla together and pour over the dough mixture. Mix until combined. The dough will still be crumbly and will not create an even mixture.
- Place ⅔ of the mixture in the baking dish and pat down.
- In a mixing bowl place the blackberries, lemon zest, cinnamon, cornstarch, and brown sugar and gently toss to coat the blackberries and pour over the bottom crust.
- Crumble the remaining dough over the blackberry filling layer.
- Bake until top is golden brown, about 40- 45 minutes.
- Allow to cool completely before removing from the baking dish and slicing.
Nutrition
Wow, these blackberry crumb bars look absolutely delicious! I’m a huge fan of blackberries and love how easy this recipe seems to be. It’s perfect for those days when I want a sweet treat but don’t want to spend too much time in the kitchen.
Made this recipe to have some snacks during the week and they didn`t last more than one day! Everyone had seconds and loved them. Making them again today!
This is absolutely delicious and so perfect to start using the fresh blackberries that are starting to grow on my plants. I am curious if I could use frozen blackberries to make this?
Yes you can certainly use frozen blackberries for this recipe.
Your blackberry bars look so great! I just found two bags of blackberries in the freezer. I’m going to make these tomorrow! Yum!! ♥️
I love crumble bars and when you add blackberries they are even better. Great dessert!
I am so ready for summer berry season to arrive! These bars just scream summertime. 🙂 Saving this one to bake up soon.
Loved the flavor and texture of these blackberry bars. They were so good1 I definitely will be making again.
Blackberries are one of my all time favorite berries to bake into desserts. This crumble was so delicious just slightly cooled with some vanilla ice cream beside it!
I love blackberries. These bars look fantastic. What a great dessert for bbq parties this summer.