Strawberry Crumble Bars with Brown Butter Glaze

5 from 2 votes

Brown butter strawberry crumble bars to die for! Oaty crumble with lots of cosy brown butter flavour and packed with strawberries. YUM!

Prep Time40

Cook Time45

Chilling Time1

Total Time2 25

Course: Dessert, Snacks

Cuisine: American

Diet: Gluten Free

Servings: bars

Calories: 181kcal

Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F. Grease and line an 8x8 inch baking pan with parchment paper.

To brown the butter, heat the butter in a saucepan or small frying pan over medium heat and whisk continuously until the butter begins to foam and darkens and smells nutty. Be very careful not to burn it! It changes very quickly - so it is worth only focusing on this one thing whilst doing it. Pour into a bowl and chill until firm but spreadable, about 1 hour.
9 tablespoons unsalted butter
Place the brown butter, brown and granulated sugars into a large bowl and beat together until light and creamy. Add the egg yolk and vanilla extract and mix briefly to combine.
¼ cup granulated sugar, ¼ cup soft brown sugar, 1 egg yolk, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and stir together until it starts to form a dough. You might need to use your hands to get the dough to form.
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour, ½ cup rolled oats, ¼ teaspoon baking powder, ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
Put ⅔ of the mixture into the prepared baking tin and press it firmly into an even layer using your hands. Bake for 15-17 minutes until lightly browned.

Place the diced strawberries into a medium saucepan or skillet and add the arrowroot starch, sugar and vanilla extract. Stir to combine. Cook over medium heat for about 7-10 minutes until the mixture thickens and the strawberries are tender and juicy but not mushy. Set aside.
3 cups hulled and diced strawberries, 1 tablespoon arrowroot or cornstarch, ¼ cup granulated sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Spread the strawberry mixture over the baked crumble base in the tin and then sprinkle over the rest of the crumble mixture. Bake for 25-30 minutes until golden brown and bubbly.
Cool completely in the tin. Remove from the tin by holding the edges of the parchment, cut into squares and store in an air tight container in the fridge for 5-7 days. Drizzle with the brown butter glaze if using.

Brown the salted butter in a small pan following the instructions above.
1 tablespoon salted butter
Pour the brown butter into a small bowl and add the cream cheese and powdered sugar. There's no need to let the butter cool first. Stir with a whisk until smooth and well combined, adding the milk a teaspoon at a time to thin the glaze to the desired consistency.
2 tablespoons cream cheese, ⅓ cup powdered sugar, 1-2 teaspoons milk

Be sure to let the brown butter chill until it solidifies again, but is still spreadable.
Make sure to completely cool the bars in the baking tin before removing and cutting.

Recipe adapted from One Tin Bakes