Strawberry Crumb Bars
March 27th, 2011 § 35 Comments
Excuse me, um, Monday Morning?
First, hi, how are you? Tired? What’s that, you didn’t sleep well? Ah, I’m sorry to hear it. Aaanywho…Juuust wanted to touch base with you about something I’ve been thinking long and hard about lately. And that is: you just don’t treat me as well as I think you should.
I mean, I spend all weekend thinking about you, making myself pretty for your arrival, dreaming up what we’ll do together…doing happy dances in my own personal space on Sunday morning just anticipating waking up to you.
And then…you let me down. Listen, it’s not entirely your fault. I bet you’re doing your best. Maybe if I didn’t binge watch past episodes of The View and E! News Weekend on Sunday night and stay up too late studying celebrity gossip, I’d wake up earlier. But you know how I love less than credible journalism. Or maybe, if I didn’t drink a Diet A&W root beer while reclining in my fluffy bed reading blogs at 11pm, I’d have less indigestion and better breath. Some things are simply too hard to change.
So, I guess…well…I’m asking you to put a little more skip in your step. Up your game a bit. Because I really want to love you like I did when we first met in 1985.
Today, I baked you a sweet treat. Because I want to set a better tone for our weekly dates. I’m a giver.
So please enjoy these strawberry crumb bars. They’re your favorite. Yes, I said crumbly. Uh huh, they do have that buttery shortbread flavor. Mmhmm, with sweet and gooey strawberry centers. Uh, yup, they’re dessert. No, not breakfast technically, but I say it’s after dinner somewhere. I thought you liked that? Listen, if you have a problem with rich little crumb squares and the slight tartness of strawberries, tell me. No? I’m sorry, I didn’t catch that, you like them?
K, good. So…let’s just say we’re a work in progress. No hard feelings, I just think we need to both put a leeeetle more effort into making our time sweeter. These are a start. An olive branch from me to you.
Ha, oh no, that’s sweet of you to think of him, but really, we don’t need to save any for Daniel. In fact, he won’t even know about them. I bet he doesn’t even realize I’d have a moment free to bake them, given how exceptionally busy I am with singing new Ingrid Michaelson songs, baking, drinking lemon lime seltzer, and making messes. So really, he’s fine about it.
Glad we had this chat.
Well I feel better. You?
Strawberry Crumb Bars
slightly adapted from Smitten Kitchen
makes 24
1 2/3 cups sugar, divided
1 ¼ teaspoons baking powder
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup unsalted butter, cold and diced into small pieces
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/4 teaspoon salt
Juice and zest of one lemon
5 cups chopped fresh strawberries
1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons cornstarch
1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a 13×9” baking pan with aluminum foil, allowing for an overhang so that you can remove the bars easily from the pan. Coat the foil well with nonstick cooking spray.
2. Whisk 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar, 3 cups flour, baking powder, salt, and lemon zest. Use a fork to blend in the cold butter and egg. The dough should be crumbly. Pat half of dough into the prepared pan.
3. In a large bowl, stir together the remaining ½ cup sugar, lemon juice, strawberries, and cornstarch. Evenly spread the strawberry mix over the crust. Crumble remaining dough over the berry layer.
4. Bake for 45 minutes, or until top is just turning golden brown. Let the bars cool completely in the pan before cutting into small squares.
Nutrition info for 1 bar: Calories: 190.6, Fat: 8.2g, Cholesterol: 28.4mg, Carb: 28g, Fiber: 1.2g, Sugars: 15.5g, Protein: 2.1g
I would like 2 of those with a cup of tea please.
Mandy
I could eat that whole stack. Am so glad strawberries are in season.
At first I thought this was going to be a post about having your period. I was excited because we would’ve been on the same cycle! Oh well. These sound delicious nonetheless.
Wow! Those Strawberry Crumb Bars look fantastic! That will be a must for us. Ever thought of writing a soap? Daniel must be scratching his head right about now wondering what he got himself into!!!!
:)
I hate Monday mornings too.
They are so rude.
But I love these bars!
Andrea, I just found your blog this weekend after Jess @ How Sweet It Is announced on Twitter that anyone who doesn’t currently follow you should start, and I’m SO glad I did!! I love your sense of humour and your recipes sound absolutely delicious. You’re now in my Google Reader!
Looks great. I might have to make this for next month’s potluck. Do you have any other favorite finger food recipes?
Monday morning didn’t treat me THAT nicely!
those look so good! i’d love to have one with my cup of coffee right now
These look amazing! I bet they made the house smell amazing too! I love the smell of strawberries!
I love your writing style too, you are too cute!
Have a great day!!
Ahhh love. These just scream summer, picnics, a light white wine, and a sunny day.
These look amazing Andrea! Strawberries are on sale right now too . . . I wonder if thats a sign?
Loving the new design and content bar! –and these bars too, of course!
Wow, I promise I’m totally not copying you (as I generally read your posts from my Google Reader and not clicking through to the page) but I also did a little bit of re-design and content adding too, plus a blog-specific email and such. Still on a freebie layout, but one a little less jarring than PINKPINKPINKKKK!!!
Keep being lovely, lady, and I’ll keep reading/admiring/borderline recipe stalking you
Wow those look awesome Andrea! Love the look of the site. It’s so easy to navigate around!
Those are totally acceptable Monday morning breakfast bars. I feel the same way today, by the way…Sunday crept out way too fast last night.
Yummypants!
I love the new design – love how clean looking it is!
And I’ve never had those kind of bars before, but, um, they do look insulin worthy!!
Im confused. What happened to the hunger challenge?
Hi Em! The Hunger Challenge is a week long event, created by the United Way.
so are you no longer doing it for the 7 days?
You’ve won me over. I’ll take twenty.
Oh, wow. I think I could eat the whole pan of these. They look seriously amazing…and they may be exactly what I do with strawberries that are sitting in my fridge!
These look amazing! I just polished off a pint of strawberries- they’re my favorite fruit!
I can’t wait to go strawberry picking this summer so that I can make these!!
(Oh, and I LOVE the new layout, by the way!).
Thanks Nic!! Glad you like the redesign! I wasn’t sure if it was just too too bare, but I like how clean it feels
Love the new look. I think you need to come have a serious talk with my Mondays. They are fickle misbehaved creatures and need a stern talking-to. When can I expect you?
Lu, you make me laugh out loud so very often. I’ll be there next Monday at 11am sharp (I figure we need to sleep in a bit if were to get off on the right foot)
Wow! I just found your blog with stumble upon, and I’m so glad I did! These bars are the perfect treat to bring to my dinner date tomorrow night. Can’t wait to make them!
Thanks Lesley!!
I want these! But if I make them, it will use up the last of our strawberries, and DH will yell at me for (yet again) turning perfectly yummy, deliciously healthy fruit into a sugary treat.
I really do like fresh fruit. And fresh veggies. But I HATE fresh fruits and veggies that are out of season and trying to pretend that they still taste just as good. So in the winter, I tend to get most of my fruits and veggies in the form of bars and pies and crisps, and pasta dishes with lots of cream sauce.
Couldn’t agree more! And like your husband, sometimes I do feel a leeeetle badly about using a whole tub of strawberries (though these were on super sale) for something like this
I usually get over it fairly fast though
This is my lesson for my class today. Thank you so very much for these great recipes.
I am thinking of making these with a combo of strawberry & rhubarb… thoughts?????
i made these with our fresh-picked strawberries to share with my dad, step-dad, and grandfather today! Everyone loved them: tart, sweet, and buttery. Thanks for making my family think I won’t be doomed in the kitchen forever