Strawberry Crumble Bars (V, GF)

Soft and extra fruity crumble bars made in a healthier version:
no refined sugar and gluten-free with wholesome ingredients only!
Enjoy them for breakfast or serve as a lighter dessert.

Every strawberry season is the same story: I always want to make all sorts of desserts with them but I can’t get enough of enjoying them fresh so I end up eating them all… I guess they are one of my favorite fruits but I know how delicious they are in desserts, so in the end I decided to sacrify 2 cups of strawberries to make these amazing Strawberry Crumble Bars.

I am a huge lover of fruity crumble bars ’cause they are easy and quick to put together and you can play with different flours and fruits to create amazing flavors. If you like crumble bars, you definitely also have to check these Fig Jam Crumble Bars

But to come back to these Strawberry Crumble Bars… they are super fruity and soft and made with simple, wholesome ingredients. Made with oats and almonds, they are naturally gluten-free and they are low on sugar and oil. Did I mention they are easy to make? Here’s the recipe to prove – Enjoy! 😉

Speaking of strawberries, here are more recipes for you to try:
Strawberry Nice Cream (vegan, GF)
Raw Strawberry Bars with Coconut Almond Cream (vegan, GF)
Strawberry and White Chocolate Chia Parfaits (vegan, GF)
Matcha White Chocolate Cups with Strawberry Jam (vegan, GF)

STRAWBERRY CRUMBLE BARS {vegan, gluten-free}

• this recipe first appeared on culinary postcards
• serves 12 square bars as pictured
• Prep time: 15min > Baking time: 35min > Total time: 50min

• Ingredients:
  for strawberry filling*
• 2 cups (300g) halved strawberries
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 Tbsp tapioca flour (or other starch) + a 3 Tbsp water
• optional: sweetener of your choice in case your strawberries are not sweet enough (up to 2 Tbsp)
  for crust
• 1 cup (100g) almond flour (finely ground blanched almonds, but almond meal will work as well)
• 2/3 cup (60g) oat flour (oats blended into flour work too)
• 3/4 cup (60g) rolled oats
• 1 Tbsp coconut flour (not flaked coconut)
• pinch of salt
• 3 Tbsp coconut sugar
• 2 tsp lemon zest or 2 drops of essential lemon oil
• 1/3 cup (70g) melted coconut oil
• 2 Tbsp almond, or other plant based milk

Method:
to make strawberry filling

1. Place strawberries and water in heavy bottom pan and bring to boil then reduce the heat.
2. Combine tapioca flour in 3 Tbsp water and some (warm) strawberry juice from the pan then pour into strawberry filling and cook for another 2-3 minutes, stirring, until thickens.
3. Take off the heat and leave to cool.

to make the crust

1. Preheat your oven to 375F (190C).
2. In a large mixing bowl combine flours, oats, sugar and salt.
3. Add melted coconut oil, almond milk and lemon zest (or oil).
4. Stir well to combine. The dough will be moist but not sticky.
5. Prepare a baking dish** (line with a parchment paper) and press 2/3 of the dough in the bottom, using your fingers, to make a bottom crust for the bars.
6. Place in the oven and bake on 375F (190C) for about 10 minutes until edges start becoming golden brown.
7. Take it out carefully, spread the strawberry filling over it, sprinkle the rest of the dough loosely on top and put crumble bars back in the oven.
8. Bake for another 20-25 minutes on 350F (170C) , until you see it becoming crunchy and lightly browned on top.
9. Take it out and leave to cool before slicing.

Notes:
* Instead of strawberries, you could also go with other berries (raspberries, blackberries or blueberries), and apricots would work nice in this recipe as well.
**I used two small rectangular pans, size 4 inch x 3 inch but you can also use one larger (e.g. 8 inch x 2inch)

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