Description

These healthy strawberry crumble bars are the perfect dessert or snack made with simple wholesome ingredients. Vegan, easy to make gluten-free and refined sugar-free.

Ingredients

Scale

Strawberry Filling

2 cups fresh strawberries, diced
2 tbsp sugar (I used coconut sugar)
2 tbsp chia seeds
1 tsp cornstarch
Juice of ½ a small lemon

Oat Crumble

1 ¾ cup rolled oats
¾ cup spelt flour
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp ginger powder
¼ tsp salt
⅓ cup almond butter or vegan butter
⅓ cup maple syrup
3 tbsp of unsweetened plant milk

Lemon Icing (Optional)

¼ cup powdered sugar
2 tsp lemon juice
1-2 tsp water

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Instructions

In a saucepan over medium heat, add in your strawberries, sugar, chia seeds, and cornstarch and allow to cook down and thicken, about 5-8 minutes.
Remove the saucepan from the heat and squeeze over top your lemon juice then set aside and allow to completely cool and thicken more as you prepare your dough.
Set oven to 350F. In a food processor, add in your oats, flour, baking powder, ginger and salt and process to make oats into a coarse flour.
Add in your maple syrup, almond butter and plant milk and process into a moldable dough.
Take ⅔ of your dough and begin pressing it into a 9in x 13in baking pan lined with parchment paper, making sure to press firmly and flatten evenly to cover the base of your pan.
Take your now thickened cooked strawberries and pour them over top of your base, spreading them out evenly.
Next, take the remaining dough and crumble it over the strawberry layer.
Place your bars in the oven for 25 minutes, then remove from the oven and allow to completely cool.
Once cooled, place the tray in the fridge for at least an hour to completely set and then gently lift your bars out of the pan using the parchment paper and carefully cut into squares using a sharp knife.
When ready to serve, mix together your icing ingredients and drizzle overtop then serve.

Notes

Allow your bars to completely cool once out of the oven. I highly recommend making sure you place the bars in the fridge to further set and firm up before cutting.

If you need to use frozen strawberries, your filling might come out extra juicy. If this happens, feel free to use additional chia seeds a little extra cornstarch to help thicken it up better.

If you notice your doough is really dry or it’s not sticking together, add a little more plant milk to make it more workable. I like to add the milk in one tablespoon at a time to help avoid the potential of the dough becoming too wet and sticky.