Blackberry Pie Bars
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Be still my heart, these blackberry pie bars are everything! Let me count the ways: rich and buttery crumbs envelop a sweet and jammy blackberry filling. With plenty of butter, lemon zest, and vine ripened blackberries, these bars are the very essence of blackberry pie, albeit in an all too effortless crumb bar.
These blissful blackberry crumb bars will be on repeat for what remains of summer, the epitome of everything I love about the season: carefree, breezy, simple, and oh so delicious.
How to make blackberry pie bars:
What I love most about these bars is that the crust and crumbs are one simple dough that comes together in under 5 minutes (thank you, melted butter!).
- Reserve 3/4 cup of the dough for the crumb topping (keep chilled), and press the remaining dough evenly and firmly into the prepared baking pan.
- Bake the crust until golden, then let cool slightly before adding the blackberry filling and reserved crumbs.
- Continue baking until the topping is golden and the blackberry filling is slightly bubbly. Let bars cool completely before slicing and serving.
- Need dessert for a large group? Simply double the recipe and bake in a 13 x 9-inch baking pan.
Blackberry Pie Bars
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 55 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Yield: 12 bars
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
Description
These blackberry pie bars taste just like blackberry pie! With plenty of buttery crumbs and blackberries, you’ll love these easy blackberry crumb bars!
Ingredients
Crust & Crumbs
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup light brown sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 2 cups flour
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
Filling
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 2 Tbsp arrowroot starch (or 1 1/2 Tbsp cornstarch)
- 2 cups blackberries, halved or quartered
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F and line an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper. Whisk together melted butter, sugar, brown sugar, vanilla, and lemon zest until combined.
- Whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon in a medium bowl; add to butter mixture and fold in until incorporated. Reserve 3/4 cup of dough for topping (keep chilled); press remaining dough evenly into bottom of prepared pan. Bake crust for 14 to 16 minutes, until lightly golden and set. Transfer to a wire rack and cool for 15 minutes.
- For the filling, combine sugar, salt, and arrowroot starch in a medium bowl. Add blackberries, lemon zest, and juice, tossing gently to combine. Spoon mixture over cooled crust and crumble reserved dough over filling.
- Bake for another 40 to 44 minutes, or until topping is golden and filling slightly bubbly. Cool completely in pan on a wire rack. Just before cutting, chill in the freezer for 10 minutes. Carefully lift parchment and place bars on a cutting board; cut into squares with a sharp knife.
Keywords: Blackberry, Lemon, Crumb Bar, Cookie Bar
More blackberry recipes you’ll love:
Blackberry Lemon Loaf Cake
Blackberry Orange Vanilla Pound Cake
Baked Blackberry Mascarpone French Toast
Blackberry White Chocolate Scones
This is excellent. I used more blackberries than called for because I have so many. Best blackberry dessert I have found!
That’s so nice to hear, thank you Martha! 🙂
I was so happy to find this recipe after I purchased 2, 6 oz. packages of fresh blackberries on sale at the market in the middle of January in New York! I was even happier that these bars came out so delicious and that the amount of blackberries I had (12 ounces) were more than enough for the filling. Thanks, Laura and Happy New Year!
★★★★★