Blackberries are in season here in Michigan and we have an abundance of them right now. I had to figure out something to bake with them and blackberry crumb bars seemed like a good choice. These bars are filled with fresh blackberries and blackberry jam. What I really like about these bars was the delicious lemon flavor they had. The sugar is mixed with lemon zest and gets infused with a lot of its flavor creating a delicious lemon taste throughout the bars. The frosting for this recipe is totally optional, if you would prefer not to make it, these bars will still taste great. The frosting combines cream cheese, powder sugar, and milk. You may have to play around with it a little to get the right consistency. This recipe is perfect for using fresh blackberries this summer. Enjoy. Adapted from une Gamine dans la Cuisine.
Blackberry Crumb Bars Recipe
- Total Time: 30 minutes
Ingredients
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon zest
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup of butter (cold, and cut into pieces)
- 1 egg
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 cups fresh blackberries
- 1 ½ cups blackberry jam
- 1/8 cup white sugar
- 3 teaspoon cornstarch
Glaze- - 3 ounces cream cheese (at room temperature)
- 1 ½ cups powder sugar
- 3 tablespoons milk
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a 9×13 inch baking dish with aluminum foil. Spray the foil with cooking spray or lightly grease with butter. In a large bowl combine lemon zest and 1 cup of sugar. Rub the zest into the sugar using a spoon or fork until it becomes somewhat moist. Add flour, baking powder, and salt. Use a fork to blend in the butter. Stir in the egg. The dough should be crumbly and wet.
- Pat half of the dough evenly onto the bottom of the prepared baking dish. In a separate bowl stir together 1/8 cup of sugar and 3 teaspoons of cornstarch. Gently stir in the blackberries and blackberry jam. Spread the blackberry mixture evenly over the crust. Crumble the remaining dough over the blackberry layer.
- Place into the oven and bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes or until the top is slightly browned. Allow the bars to cool completely before cutting into squares.
- In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Sift in the powdered sugar. Add the milk, a little at a time, until the glaze has reached a consistency that it can be drizzled over the bars using a fork. Drizzle the frosting over the cooled brownies.
Regina
Wednesday 9th of July 2014
I have a lot of blackberries I just picked, but no blackberry jam. Is it required that you use a jam with the recipe or will it change the taste entirely? I'd like to make these bars just using the fresh blackberries.
Please advise.
Thank you.
Bobby
Thursday 10th of July 2014
I would say that the jam will help to create the consistency of the filling, so the recipe would not be the same without it. I have never tried it without the jam. You also may want to look at this recipe and just use blackberries instead of blueberries: https://blogchef.net/blueberry-crumb-bars-recipe/
Jessica
Friday 20th of September 2013
I finally found a great blackberry recipe! Thank you! But I did change the glaze, instead of adding cream cheese, I used 1 cup powdered sugar, 1/2 tsp of vanilla, 1tbsp of lemon zest and 1 tbsp of milk! Worked like a charm!
Dorthy
Monday 13th of August 2012
That was probably the BEST recipe ever!! I saw this and made it for my family as a new treat and everybody just LOVED it!! I think next time I will use a different jam to change things up a bit, but it DEFFINATELY worked with the suggested blackberry jam! Thank you for this recipe! I will have to look into your other recipes to see if there is one equally as great! Thanks!!
Robyn
Saturday 11th of August 2012
Made these last night...absolutely DELICIOUS! Instead of just blackberry, I turned it into a triple-berry version. Used raspberry jam, and mixed in blackberries and cut up strawberries. And I love the lemony hint in the crumble part...compliments the berries so well! Thanks for this awesome recipe :)
Bobby
Monday 6th of August 2012
Daniela @ foodrecipeshq - blueberries would work fine. You could try using flour instead of the cornstarch but I am not positive how it would turn out. If you do, please let me know how it turns out.