Beautiful strawberry crumble bars made with almond flour and oat flour to keep them gluten free. These strawberry oatmeal bars are easily made vegan and are naturally sweetened with fresh strawberries and a bit of pure maple syrup. The perfect summer treat with the sweet taste of strawberry pie in every bite!
1 ½cups(168g) packed fine almond flour (do not use almond meal)
1 ½cups(138g) oat flour
¾cup(71g) oats
½teaspoonsalt
½cup(113g) melted and cooled salted butter (or sub vegan butter or melted coconut oil)
⅓cup(104g) pure maple syrup
½teaspoonvanilla extract
For the filling:
1pound(454g) fresh strawberries, diced
3tablespoonspure maple syrup
1tablespooncornstarch (or arrowroot starch)
1teaspoonlemon juice
¼teaspoonalmond extract (or sub vanilla)
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 9x9 inch pan with parchment paper and spray the pan with nonstick cooking spray to prevent sticking.
To make the base + topping: In a large bowl, use a fork to mix together the almond flour, oat flour, oats and salt. Add in melted butter, pure maple syrup and vanilla extract and stir until a nice crumble forms and dough begins to clump together. Reserve 1 cup of the mixture for the topping and set aside. Use your hands to evenly press the remaining dough into the bottom of the pan.
Bake the crust for 10 minutes, then remove from heat.
While your crust is baking, make your strawberry filling: place a medium pot over medium heat. Add in strawberries, maple syrup, cornstarch (or arrowroot), lemon juice and almond extract. Bring to a simmer, then reduce heat to low and cook for 3-5 more minutes, stirring frequently until the mixture is slightly thickened and strawberries release some of their juices.
Pour strawberry filling over the crust and use a spoon to spread over the top. Top with the reserved topping. Bake for 35-45 minutes or until filling bubbles along the edges and top is golden brown. Allow bars to cool completely before cutting into, otherwise they will fall apart. To speed up this process you can transfer to the fridge. Serve with vanilla ice cream for dessert, or enjoy a slice as a snack!
Notes
If you want to make this recipe nut free, feel free to use the crust and crumble from my blueberry pie bar recipe.See the full post for tips, tricks & ways to customize these bars!