Jammy Berry Squares

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 25

Total Time 45

Servings -16 bars

Author Margaret Bose Johnson

Ingredients

for the berry filling:

3 cups (400gms) berries, fresh or frozen, (cut-up if using strawberries)
1½ tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon lemon juice
½ cup (150gms) jam of choice, to match the berries or complement them

for the crust and crumble layer:

2 cups (200gms) old-fashioned large-flake rolled oats
1 cup (140gms) gluten-free flour blend (or regular flour for non-gluten-free) link for my gluten-free flour recipe
¾ cup (170gms) salted butter
⅔ cup (130gms) brown sugar, packed
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
½ cup (50gms) chopped pecans or walnuts, optional

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400℉ (170℃). Grease an 8x8-inch (20x20cm) square baking pan.

make the berry filling:

In a saucepan, toss the berries with the cornstarch. Add the lemon juice and jam and stir to combine.
Cook the berries over medium-high heat, stirring often, just until they come to a boil and the juices thicken up. Set aside to cool slightly while you make the crust.

make the crust and crumble topping:

Combine the oats, flour, butter, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat on low speed until combined and crumbly. Alternately, mix by hand with a wooden spoon or pastry cutter.
Stir in the nuts, if using.
Dump half of the oat crumbles into the greased pan and press down firmly to make a bottom crust.
Pour the slightly cooled filling over the crust and spread it out evenly.
Sprinkle the remaining half of the oat crumbles evenly over the filling and press them lightly with your palm to make the top even and smoothed out.
Bake for 25 minutes, until the filling is bubbling up a bit around the edges and the oat crumbles are lightly golden.
Let cool in the pan, then cut into squares (9 squares for dessert portions, or 12-16 bars for snack-sized portions).
Serves 9 to 16.

Notes

If using juicy berries like blackberries, increase the cornstarch to 2 tablespoons. If using dry berries like saskatoons, increase the lemon juice to 2 tablespoons and add ¼ cup (60ml) water when cooking them.

Instead of berries, you can also use diced stone fruits like peaches, apricots, or plums, or use diced rhubarb or kiwi fruit, too, for delicious variations of these bars.

Using matching berries and jam, like strawberries with strawberry jam, blueberries with blueberry jam, gooseberries with gooseberry jam. Or use complementary combinations, like rhubarb with strawberry jam, peaches with raspberry jelly, or blueberries with orange marmalade.