Raspberry Crumb Bars Recipe - Private Chef in Rhode Island Chef Chelc

Hi all!

I’m sorry I’ve been a bit MIA. I feel as though I will continue to apologize for that the rest of this month hah but I’ll do my best to keep sharing recipes!

I’m very happy to report that I hit my fundraising goal for the month of June in care package sales. If you’re unfamiliar with what I’m talking about, I started a small side business of making custom care packages. For the month of June I announced that I would donate 100% of the proceeds to Grass Roots Law Project, and my goal was to raise 2,000 dollars. My grand total, $2,195!!

Me and my babies! Jk lol..You can still order a care package for yourself or someone you love. Linked here is all the info!

One of my most popular care package items has been my raspberry crumb bars.

They are so delicious and so easy to make!

You start by making the shortbread layer. Warning, this recipe has a LOT of butter. But on the bright side this recipe makes a LOT of crumb bars. So it all balances out 🙂

You melt 3 sticks of butter (!!!) in a pan, then mix that with some flour, sugar, vanilla extra and salt.

It will look kind of crumbly like this but that’s what you want! Use your fingers to pat the mixture down to form an even layer.

Ta da! Now bake just like this at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare the crumb topping.

In a bowl goes oats, brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, salt, and another stick of butter.

Use your hands once again to mix everything up so the butter combines with the mixture.

Once the shortbread is done baking. Take it out of the oven and carefully spread raspberry jam all over. You could make these peach, apricot, strawberry, blueberry, etc, using whatever fruit jam you prefer!

Top with the crumb topping and then bake for about 35 minutes.

The key with these bars is they have to be made ahead of time. I usually make them a day advance. Once they come out of the oven and cool down I cover the pan and stick the whole thing in the fridge overnight. They are much easier to slice when they are cold. I also kind of prefer to eat them cold but they can be kept out covered at room temperature for about 3 days.

I hope you give these a try!

Raspberry Crumb Bars

Makes 32 2 by 2 inch bars

Ingredients:

1 pound butter, divided (4 total sticks)
¾ cup granulated sugar
3 tsp vanilla extract
¾ tsp salt
3.5 cup all purpose flour (divided)
1 cup oats
⅔ cup brown sugar
¾ tsp cinnamon
1 18 oz jar raspberry jam

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Line a 13 by 9 inch pan with parchment paper so that the paper goes over the sides slightly. Spray that paper and the pan with nonstick spray.
Melt 3 sticks of butter. Once melted, add in 3 tsp vanilla extract. To that, mix in 3 cups flour, ¾ tsp salt, and ¾ cup granulated sugar.
Place that mixture in the pan and use your hands to form it into an even layer across. Bake for 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, make the crumb topping. In a separate bowl mix the oats, brown sugar, ½ cup flour, and cinnamon. Cut one stick of butter into small cubes and add that in. Use your hands to break up the butter and mix everything together.
Once the shortbread comes out and cools slightly, top with the raspberry jam in an even layer. Then top with the crumb topping in an even layer.
Bake for 35 minutes. Allow to cool completely. Cover the whole pan with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for at least 3 hours (or overnight). Then cut into 32 even squares.

Note:

I prefer to keep these in the fridge and eat them cold because of all the butter, but you can leave them out at room temperature for about 3 days in an airtight container.