Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble Bars

These easiest and most delicious Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble Bars feature a sweet fruit filling and buttery crumb topping. Serve them as a handheld dessert, for holiday gatherings, spring tea parties, potluck parties and summer picnics.

Ingredients You’ll Need to Make Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble Bars Recipe

When rhubarb is in season, it’s the ideal time to whip-up these crumb bars. The sweet strawberries balance the tart flavor of the rhubarb in a most delicious way. Ingredients to make homemade Strawberry Rhubarb Bars: (Scroll down for full printable recipe card.)

Rhubarb – Fresh or frozen rhubarb chopped into 1/4-1/2 inch pieces.
Strawberries – Fresh strawberries combine with the rhubarb for a fruity flavor.
Sugar – Granulated sugar for sweetness.
Cornstarch – Cornstarch stabilizes the fruit filling.
Citrus – Lemon juice adds acidity and a brightness to the flavor.
Crust Ingredients – Quick cooking oats, all purpose flour, light brown sugar, granulated sugar, baking soda and salt.
Nuts – Chopped pecans adds texture and crunch to the crumb topping.
Butter – Salted butter adds richness to the dry ingredients for the crust and the crumble mixture.
Glaze – Powdered sugar, heavy cream and vanilla extract to drizzle the bars once they’ve cooled.

How to Make the BEST Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble Bars Recipe

Make the Strawberry Rhubarb Filling: Combine rhubarb, strawberries and lemon juice in a large pot. Simmer over medium heat until the fruit is tender.
Make the Thickener: Combine granulated sugar and cornstarch then stir the mixture into the fruit mixture. Continue to cook while stirring until the mixture comes to a boil. Cook until thickened.
Heat Oven and Prepare Pan: Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a 13×9-inch baking pan with cooking spray.
Sift Dry Ingredients: Use a whisk to sift together the flour, oats, brown sugar, granulated sugar, baking soda and salt.
Add Butter: Add softened butter. Beat with a hand mixer until it comes together and resembles crumbs. Remove 1 1/2 cups. Press the remaining flour-butter mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan.
Rhubarb-Strawberry Filling: Spread the cooked fruit over the crust.
Crumb Topping: Combine the remaining 1 1/2 cups crumb mixture and mix with 1/2 cup pecans. Sprinkle on top.
Oven: Bake per the cooking time in the recipe until golden brown. Cool completely on a wire rack.
Make Glaze: In a small bowl whisk together the powdered sugar, heavy cream and vanilla. Drizzle over cooled bars.

Tips for Making Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble Bars

Kitchen Equipment You’ll Need: Large saucepan, 13×9-inch baking pan or baking dish, large bowl, medium bowl, measuring cups and measuring spoons, hand mixer or food processor, sharp knife and chopping board, strawberry huller and nut chopper and wire rack.
Pastry Cutter: Using a hand mixer to make the crust simplifies the prep time. The butter for the crust isn’t cold like classic shortbread, but you can make it using a pastry cutter, cutting the butter into the dry ingredients until it resembles peas.
Line the Pan with Parchment Paper: If you’d like to remove the bars from the pan for slicing, line the baking pan with two strips of parchment paper leaving an overhang to create “handles” for lifting. Spray the parchment paper with cooking spray and proceed with the recipe.
When to Serve Strawberry Rhubarb Crumb Bars: These crumb bars can be enjoyed for Easter brunch, Mother’s Day, tea parties with friends, picnics, potlucks and casual holiday gatherings. They’re delicious with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Recipe Variations

Brown Sugar: You could use dark brown sugar in place of light brown sugar for a stronger molasses flavor and super chewy texture. When doing so, expect the crust and crumble to be darker in color.
Oatmeal: You can use old fashioned oats in place of quick cooking oats, in a pinch. Give them a quick pulse in a food processor to chop them slightly finer, but don’t grind them. I don’t recommend using instant oatmeal for these bars.
Citrus: You can use orange juice or lime juice in place of lemon.
Butter: You can use salted or unsalted butter for the crust.
Strawberries: You could replace the strawberries with cranberries, cherries or raspberries.
Nuts: You could use chopped walnuts or macadamia nuts in place of pecans.
White Chocolate Glaze: You may choose to drizzle these bars with a white chocolate ganache. Melt 1/2 cup of white chocolate chips in a double boiler with 2-3 tablespoons of heavy cream until completely smooth. Drizzle the tops of the cooled Strawberry Rhubarb Bars.

Storage and Leftovers

Storage: You can store these Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble Bars in an airtight container chilled in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Serving: Enjoy these cookie bars warm with vanilla ice cream or at room temperature with a tall glass of milk.
Freezer: You can bake, cool and freeze these bars for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge and enjoy!

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