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Blueberry Pie Bars
Easy blueberry pie bars are a cinch to make with a buttery brown sugar crust that also becomes the crumble topping over a juicy blueberry lemon filling.
Ingredients
Crust and Topping:
- 1 cup plus 2 tbsp 160g all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup 75g old-fashioned rolled oats
- ⅓ cup 70g packed light brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup 113g salted butter, melted
Filling:
- 3 ½ cups 420g blueberries (fresh or frozen)
- ⅓ cup 65g granulated sugar
- 1 ½ tablespoon 12g cornstarch
- 2 teaspoon 10ml lemon juice
Icing:
- 2 tablespoon 30ml blueberry filling liquid (reserved from making the filling)
- 1 teaspoon 5ml lemon juice
- ¾ cup to 1 cup powdered (icing) sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on the sides to easily lift the bars out of the pan.
- Make the base and topping. Combine flour, oats, brown sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, lemon zest and salt together in a large bowl. Make sure that it is evenly blended with no lumps of brown sugar. Add the cooled melted butter and stir until the mixture is evenly combined and it holds together in moist clumps with no dry spots remaining. Remove one-third of the mixture and set it aside for the topping. Tip ⅔ of the mixture into the prepared baking pan. Press it evenly into the pan with your hands, and then smooth it out with the bottom of a measuring cup. Bake for 12 minutes, and then remove from the oven to cool slightly.
- Make the filling. Place the blueberries, sugar, cornstarch and lemon juice in a saucepan over medium-high heat on the stove and stir gently to combine. Cook and stir for 7-10 minutes until it begins to thicken and bubble. Once it bubbles, immediately remove from heat and let cool slightly. Reserve 2 tablespoons of the juices from this filling and set it aside to make the icing.
- Spread the filling over the crust. Crumble the remaining crust mixture over the filling leaving it in clumps. Bake for about 25–30 minutes until the top is golden brown and the blueberry filling is bubbling around the edges.
- Transfer to a wire rack and let the bars cool completely in the pan. Then, cover and refrigerate the cooled bars for 2 hours.
- Make the icing. Combine reserved 2 tablespoons of blueberry filling juice with lemon juice and enough powdered sugar to make a thick glaze. Drizzle it over the cooled bars and let it set for about 20 minutes before slicing and serving.
