Gluten-Free Blackberry Oat Crumble Bars

Hudson always wants a treat - he literally asks me all throughout the day for one. Oftentimes, when he is on his rotation diet, it’s difficult to find one for him because treats tend to use multiple flours, starches, or fruits, and he can usually only have one of each every day to make sure he doesn’t repeat them more than once every four days. It was oat and blackberry day last week when he asked me for a treat so I decided to try to get a bit creative in the kitchen to see if I could make something that would work for him.

These blackberry crumble bars were the result of oats, blackberries, and a little unrefined sugar, and they were a way bigger hit than I could have anticipated. They have quickly become a favorite dessert and even breakfast occasionally in our house! They are so fresh but also have the perfect amount of sweetness from the coconut sugar and maple syrup. When I make a crumble, I’m usually more interested in the crumble than the fruit, if I’m being honest, so this has a thick crust and a generous topping as well.

It’s great at room temperature but becomes so much better when warmed just slightly before eating it. The best part of these crumble bars is how versatile they are! You can use just about any berry you have on hand and you can even swap some banana or applesauce in the crust for added natural sweetness.

The jam that goes in the middle of these bars is only 3 ingredients and only takes about 5-7 minutes to make, so go ahead and make extra jam to keep in the fridge while you’re at it!

Enjoy!

Prep Time: 20 minutes Cook Time: 30 minutes Yields: 9 servings

INGREDIENTS:

Blackberry Jam:

2 cups blackberries (fresh or frozen)

2 Tbsp chia seeds

2 Tbsp maple syrup

Crumble Bar Crust:

1 1/2 cups oat flour

1 1/2 cups rolled oats

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 cup coconut sugar

1/4 cup maple syrup

1/2 tsp (heaping) baking soda

good pinch of salt

1 flax egg (1 Tbsp ground flaxseed + 3 Tbsp water)

1/2 cup melted coconut oil

Topping:

1/3 cup oat flour

1/3 cup rolled oats

1/2 tsp cinnamon

2 Tbsp coconut sugar

2 Tbsp melted coconut oil

pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Blackberry Jam:

1. Heat blackberries, chia, and maple syrup in saucepan over medium high heat and stir frequently.

2. Once blackberries begin to break down and create a syrup smash with potato masher or fork to make mostly smooth (a few small pieces are fine).

3. Continue to heat and stir until jam thickens. Once it is the consistency of jam remove from heat and set aside.

Crumble Bar Crust:

1. In a medium bowl add all crust ingredients together and stir until coconut oil and flax egg are well distributed and mixture appears a bit wet.

2. Pour crust into 8 x 8 square pan and press down with fingers to create a crust covering the bottom of the pan. Set aside.

Topping:

1. In a small bowl add all topping ingredients together and stir well to combine. Set aside.

Assembly:

1. Pour slightly cooled jam on top of crumble bar crust and spread evenly, being sure to spread to edges too.

2. Sprinkle topping evenly over jam.

3. Bake for 25-30 minutes at 350 degrees.

4. Cool and slice.

5. Bars will keep for 1-2 days in a sealed container at room temperature. Store leftovers in fridge or freeze.

Recipe Notes:

1. If you do not have oat flour on hand, you can make your own by blending rolled oats in your Vitamix, or another high speed blender, until oats have become a fine flour.

2. If your coconut oil is solid at room temperature, you can microwave a small cup of it before stirring into remaining ingredients.

3. Brown sugar can be substituted for coconut sugar if you do not need the recipe to be refined sugar free.

4. If you are using a good non-stick pan, greasing the pan is not necessary because there is a good amount of coconut oil in the recipe already.

5. The flax egg can be substituted with 1/4 cup mashed ripe banana or applesauce. I used a flax egg to keep this rotation-diet friendly and only use one type of fruit in the recipe.

6. Any berry of your choice can be substituted for blackberries.

7. If crumble bars have been frozen or placed in the refrigerator, the coconut oil in the crust will solidify and make the bars hard. Heat for 20-30 seconds to warm the bar before eating.