Sweet, tart, buttery, these Strawberry Rhubarb Bars have it all. I’m talking a scrumptious, buttery crust with a gooey strawberry and rhubarb filling! They’re the perfect sweet and tart dessert that everyone will enjoy!
The Best Strawberry Rhubarb Bars Recipe
I almost missed rhubarb season this year! Thankfully, I remembered it because I’ve been dying to make these strawberry rhubarb bars. If you love the combination of sweet and tart, then these bars are for you. They come complete with the most perfect, buttery crumble crust that’s for both the bottom crust and the crumble top. These bars are so incredibly easy to make, you’ll be making these over and over again.
I love to serve these with a scoop of ice cream and if I have extra strawberries, I make a mean strawberry sauce that I love to pour warm over that vanilla ice cream. It’s what my dessert dreams are made of. Utterly irresistible!
Strawberry Rhubarb Bars Highlights
- No Special Equipment Needed. Just a good old bowl and your spatula! Forget mixers, blenders or any other fancy equipment, which is why anyone, and I mean anyone can make these strawberry rhubarb bars.
- Pantry Staple Ingredients. The buttery crumble crust is so simple to make, you probably already have these ingredients in your pantry. You just need the rhubarb and strawberries!
- Easy And Quick To Make. If you know how to stir, then you can make these bars.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Fruit – You’ll need a couple cups of each fresh strawberries and diced rhubarb.
- Rolled Oats – You’ll need plain old fashioned rolled oats.
- Flour – All-purpose flour.
- Butter – I use unsalted butter, if you’re using salted butter, then you can reduce or omit the salt.
- Sugar – You’ll need both granulated sugar and brown sugar. For brown sugar, both dark or light will work.
- Cornstarch – This needs to be added to the fruit filling to thicken the juices from the fruits.
- Baking Powder – Just a little bit is needed in our crumble mixture to give it a bit of a lift when it bakes.
- Lemon – We need both the lemon zest and a bit of lemon juice for the fruit filling.
- Salt And Vanilla – Both important to desserts to elevate all the great flavors from the other ingredients.
How To Make Strawberry Rhubarb Bars
- Prep the oven and baking dish. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a 9×9-inch baking dish with cooking spray then line it with parchment paper, with the parchment paper hanging off the sides to make it easy to lift out the bars.
- Make the fruit filling. In a mixing bowl combine all the filling ingredients together.
- Make the crumble mixture. To a large bowl, add the flour, oats, baking powder, brown sugar, granulated sugar, salt and toss to combine. Add the butter and vanilla extract and stir using a spatula or a pastry cutter until well combined and crumbly. Set aside about a cup for the topping.
- Assemble the bars. Press the remaining crumb mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan. Spread the strawberries and rhubarb evenly over the crumb layer in the baking pan. Sprinkle the reserved crumb mixture over the fruit and gently press down with your hands.
- Bake. Transfer the baking pan to the oven and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour or until lightly browned.
- Cool, cut and serve. Cool completely before cutting into slices and serving. Serve with vanilla ice cream if preferred.
When Is Rhubarb In Season?
Rhubarb season is usually from April through June. While some groceries may have it available year-round, I’ve never been able to find fresh rhubarb any other time. You can always use frozen rhubarb, which you can find in the freezer section of grocery stores.
What Does Rhubarb Taste Like?
Rhubarb has a very tart taste which is why it’s always cooked or baked with sugar, like in this delicious Strawberry Rhubarb Pie or Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp.
Can I Use Frozen Strawberries or Frozen Rhubarb?
Yes, in this recipe you can use both frozen strawberries and frozen rhubarb, but I recommend thawing it first and draining as much of the liquid as possible.
How Do You Prepare Rhubarb For Baking?
Rhubarb is very easy to prepare. Simply trim off and discard all leaves at the ends of the stalks and remove any brown spots or coarse strings you may see on the stalks. Wash with cold water, no soaking is necessary. All you have to do now is cut it lengthwise then into ¼ inch pieces.
Expert Tips
- Line the baking dish with parchment paper, it will make your life so much easier, to remove the bars out of the baking dish. However, if you just want to cut them in the baking dish, then no parchment paper is necessary.
- To make a quick strawberry sauce to serve over your ice cream and strawberry rhubarb bars, simply add 1 pound sliced strawberries, â…“ cup sugar and a tablespoon lemon juice, to a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat then simmer for 20 minutes. To make a smoother sauce, put it in a blender and blend until desired consistency.
- Check your bars after 45 minutes of baking, I like my top crust to be a nice brown golden color, so for mine it took a whole hour to get to that.
Leftovers
Store leftover strawberry rhubarb bars in an airtight container at room temperature for 2 days or in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
More Yummy Bars/Squares Recipe To Try
- Lemon Bars
- Strawberry Pretzel Salad
- Oatcakes
- Triple Layer Rice Krispie Brownies
- Lemon Cheesecake Bars
- Pecan Pie Cheesecake Bars
- Nanaimo Bars
- Salted Caramel Apple Pie Cheesecake Bars
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Strawberry Rhubarb Bars
Equipment
Ingredients
Crumb layers
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1½ cups rolled oats
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup brown sugar packed
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ¾ cup butter unsalted, softened
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Filling
- 2 cups strawberries hulled and diced
- 2 cups rhubarb diced in small ¼ pieces
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice freshly squeezed
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- â…“ cup sugar
Instructions
- Prep the oven and baking dish. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a 9×9-inch baking dish with cooking spray then line it with parchment paper, with the parchment paper hanging off the sides to make it easy to lift out the bars.
- Make the fruit filling. In a mixing bowl combine all the filling ingredients together.
- Make the crumble mixture. To a large bowl, add the flour, oats, baking powder, brown sugar, granulated sugar, salt and toss to combine. Add the butter and vanilla extract and stir using a spatula or a pastry cutter until well combined and crumbly. Set aside about a cup for the topping.
- Assemble the bars. Press the rest of the crumb mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan. Spread the strawberries and rhubarb evenly over the crumb layer in the baking pan. Sprinkle the reserved crumb mixture over the fruit and gently press down with your hands.
- Bake. Transfer the baking pan to the oven and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour or until lightly browned.
- Cool, cut and serve. Cool completely before cutting into slices and serving. Serve with vanilla ice cream if preferred.
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