Healthy Strawberry Oatmeal Crumble Bars

These healthy strawberry oat crumble bars have a soft almond flour shortbread crust, a jammy strawberry filling, and a crunchy oat and almond streusel on top. They're gluten-free, naturally sweetened with maple syrup and honey, and work with fresh or frozen berries.

5 from 6 votes

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Prep Time 10

Cook Time 40

Total Time 50

Serving servings

Ingredients

For the Crust and Crumble:

2 cups almond flour, spooned and leveled (superfine blanched almond flour is best)
¾ cup oats
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon cornstarch, (or tapioca starch)
2 ½ tablespoon coconut sugar, (or brown sugar)
2 ½ tablespoon real maple syrup , (or honey)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
⅓ cup melted unsalted butter, (or coconut oil)

For the Crumble Topping:

¼ cup sliced almonds,

Strawberry Filling:

3 cups strawberries, sliced into thirds (fresh or frozen)
2 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon cornstarch, (or tapioca starch)

Instructions

Preheat your oven: Set it to 350°F. Grease an 8x8-inch pan and line it with parchment paper so the bars are easy to lift out later.
Make the crust mixture: In a large bowl, whisk together the almond flour, oats, salt, and cornstarch. Add the coconut sugar, maple syrup, vanilla, and melted butter. Mix until the dough holds together with no dry spots.
Set aside the crumble topping: Scoop out ½ cup of the dough and place it in a separate bowl. Add the sliced almonds and mix; this will be your crumble topping.
Press the crust into the pan: Take the remaining dough and press it evenly into the bottom of your prepared pan. Use the bottom of a glass to really pack it down. Gently poke the crust a few times with a fork to keep it from puffing up.
Pre-bake the crust: Bake for 8–10 minutes, until the edges are lightly golden. Then take it out of the oven.
Make the strawberry filling: While the crust bakes, add the sliced strawberries and honey to a medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes, until the strawberries are juicy but still a little chunky.
Thicken the filling: In a small bowl, stir the cornstarch with a splash of water to make a slurry. Pour it into the strawberries, stir, and let it bubble for about 30 seconds. Then remove from heat.
Assemble the bars: Pour the warm strawberry mixture over the baked crust. Then sprinkle the almond crumble topping evenly over the strawberries.
Bake again: Return the pan to the oven and bake for another 15–20 minutes, until the topping is golden and the filling looks set.
Let them cool completely: Cool the bars in the pan before slicing. This helps them firm up and hold their shape. Enjoy!

Notes

Frozen strawberries: they work well. Do not thaw first, add them straight to the saucepan when you cook the filling. Expect a slightly jammier, wetter filling.

Cool completely before slicing: the bars firm up as they cool and will fall apart if cut warm. Cool fully in the pan or speed it up in the fridge.

Dairy free: use melted coconut oil in place of butter.

Nut free: swap the almond flour for an equal amount of oat flour and leave out the sliced almonds. The crust will be a little less tender but still holds together.

Thickener swap: tapioca starch or arrowroot powder works in place of cornstarch in the filling.

Sweetener swap: coconut sugar and brown sugar are interchangeable, as are honey and maple syrup.

Storage: keeps 5 days in the fridge or freezes up to 2 months. Freeze with parchment between the layers.

Nutrition

Course Dessert

Cuisine American, Healthy

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