Strawberry Crumb Bars

These Strawberry Crumb Bars are easy to make and have a buttery crust, a sweet filling made with fresh strawberries, and a crunchy butter crumb topping. They are great for an afternoon snack, a summer party, a picnic, or a potluck.

Why should you make strawberry crumb bars?

My buddy instructs me to bring a dessert to her party on Saturday.Don’t worry! I have a lot of tasty, quick, and easy sweets to pick from.

But these Strawberry Crumb Bars are quite easy to make, especially if you have fresh strawberries on hand. They are also very tasty, and I never have any left over. I prefer to offer them as a dessert with some of my other favorite things, such chicken empanadas, chicken and dumplings in the instant pot, or mahi mahi.

If you read my blog, you may have noticed that my desserts are usually easy to make. A lot of the time, they are magic bars, fruit bars, or brownies. Not hard at all. I didn’t see any reason to change that pattern. My blog is all about quick, easy, and tasty recipes, after all.

Time to pick strawberries!

It’s time for strawberries! If you live near one, I highly recommend going to the local strawberry farm to harvest strawberries. The strawberries are so fresh and luscious, and it’s a lot of fun. We love to go to one that is just outside of town in the spring. If you can’t go to the strawberry farm, you can always go to the grocery store during strawberry season, when they usually offer fresh strawberries.

What Works About This Recipe for Strawberry Crumb Bars?

The buttery crumb crust and topping on these Strawberry Crumb Bars give them a lot of flavor. Why does this recipe work?Strawberries that are fresh.Use fresh strawberries if you have them. This dish is particularly good because of the sweet strawberry filling.Crust with buttery crumbs.The buttery crumb crust and luscious strawberries make the Strawberry bars stand out.This recipe has been tried and true.Don’t believe me when I say how amazing this recipe is. There are more than 200,000 people who pinned this dish on Pinterest. Here are a few of the 88 comments.

I changed my Blueberry Crumb Bars recipe to make these Strawberry Crumb Bars by using fresh strawberries instead of blueberries. Both of them taste great.

I used solely white sugar for these Strawberry Crumb Bars instead of a mix of white and brown sugar.

You have to chop the fresh strawberries for the Strawberry Crumb Bars, which takes longer than the Blueberry Crumb Bars. But the final product is well worth the work.

What Do I Need to Make Strawberry Crumb Bars?

The recipe card at the end of the blog post has the exact amounts of each ingredient and step-by-step instructions for making the Strawberry Crumb Bars.Sugar in GranulesFlour for All PurposesButter, egg, vanilla, strawberries, cornstarch, and baking powder

2 ½ cups of flour for all purposes
½ cup of sugar that has been granulated
1 teaspoon of baking powder
¼ teaspoon of salt
1 big egg
1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1 cup (2 sticks / 226g) of very cold unsalted butter
⅓ cup of sugar in crystals
4 teaspoons of cornstarch
3 cups of fresh strawberries that have been hulled and diced

What Kind of Strawberries Should You Use for Strawberry Crumb Bars?

Fresh: The best and first choice is to utilize fresh strawberries. I used that when I tested this recipe, and it worked great.
Frozen: Some readers have used frozen strawberries with success. I suggest draining any extra liquid from them before adding them to the recipe.
Preserves: Some readers claimed they used strawberry preserves for the filling and loved the bars. I think that might modify the taste and texture a little from the original recipe, but it would still be wonderful.

How to Make Strawberry Crumb Bars (with Measurements)

1. Set your oven to 375°F (190°C) and gently grease or line a 9×13-inch (23x33cm) baking pan with parchment paper.

Make the topping and crumb crust

1. Stir together in a medium bowl:
  - 2 ½ cups of flour for all purposes
  - ½ cup of sugar that has been granulated
  - 1 teaspoon of baking powder
  - ¼ teaspoon of salt
2. In a small basin, mix:
  - 1 big egg with a fork
3. Add the egg that has been beaten and:
  - 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
  …into the flour mixture and whisk until everything is well mixed.
4. Cut in:
  - Cut up 1 cup (2 sticks / 226g) of very cold unsalted butter into tiny cubes.
5. Use a fork, pastry cutter, or food processor until the mixture is crumbly.

Make the Strawberry Filling 🍓

1. Mix together in a different bowl:
  - ⅓ cup of sugar in crystals
  - 4 teaspoons of cornstarch
2. Add 3 cups of fresh strawberries that have been hulled and diced.
3. Gently combine the sugar and cornstarch together to coat the strawberries.

🧱 Put together the Strawberry Crumb Bars

1. Press half of the crumb dough into the bottom of the pan that has been prepped to make an equal layer.
2. Spread the strawberry mixture evenly over the dough layer.
3. Put the rest of the dough on top of the strawberries. It’s fine if some strawberries show through.

🔥 Bake the Strawberry Crumb Bars

1. Put in the oven that has been preheated for 45 minutes, or until the topping is a light golden brown.

❄️ Let it cool and serve

Let the bars cool in the pan for 10 to 15 minutes.
Cut into squares or bars and serve warm or at room temperature.

How to Make Perfect Strawberry Crumb Bars

Strawberries that are fresh. If you can find them, I suggest using fresh strawberries for the finest taste, sweetness, and texture.
Make sure your butter is really cold. This is really critical for getting the crumb crust to the right texture. It starts to melt too soon if the butter is heated.
Check to see that the baking powder is still OK. Yes, baking powder can become bad after a while. Make sure the baking powder you are using is still OK by checking the date.
Don’t work too hard on the crumb topping. This will also cause the butter to melt too quickly.
Paper for parchment. Put parchment paper in the bottom of your baking dish and allow it hang over the edges. This will make it easier to take the strawberry crumb bars out of the oven when they are done.
Use your food processor to get the correct crumb consistency without having to do any labor. It just makes things a bit simpler.
Wait. Wait patiently for these to bake and cool.
Make the recipe twice as much. You can simply double the recipe and bake it in a 9×13 baking dish if you have a lot of people to feed. To double the proportions of the ingredients, just adjust the number of servings in the recipe card below from 9 to 18.