Full of juicy blackberries and topped with a crisp buttery crumb topping these blackberry crumble bars are so simple, easy to make and delicious!

Being somewhere between a healthy bar and an indulgent treat these blackberry crumble bars are SO versatile.  They make a quick grab and go breakfast or a yummy afternoon treat.  Or how about warmed with a big dollop of vegan vanilla ice-cream?  Pretty much why life is worth living right?

They actually ‘age’ really well too and after 1-2 days the fruit starts to soften the crumble base making them very slightly more chewy.  And about a million miles better than anything out of a packet.  They can also be adapted to use whatever fruit is in season – blueberries, strawberries, raspberries.  Though I have a slightly different and gluten free raspberry crumble bars recipe that are just as delicious and a little bit healthier with no refined sugar.  But I’m feeling all the warm, cosy autumn vibes right now and blackberries to me = autumn.

We live next door to a large dog walking field that has wild blackberries growing and I love seeing them start to pop out around the end of August.  It means autumn is on its way.  Even if the birds that eat them then leave blackberry tinted presents on the car.

How to make these sticky pie bars

Make the jam.  And this REALLY isn’t as complicated (or sugar-laden) as it sounds.  Just the fruit, sweetener of choice, a squeeze of lemon and a pinch of zest bubbled for just 10 minutes.  Then stir in chia seeds and bubble for another 5 before leaving to cool slightly.  The chia seeds expand and help the jam to thicken.  This lessens the cooking time and sugar quantity and makes lovely homemade jam in a pinch!

Make the crumble mix.  This is just as simple as weighing the dry ingredients into a bowl then stirring in the melted butter.  You’ll need to mix it well, so that the butter is well incorporated and makes the mixture like lumpy wet sand.

Put 2/3 of the mixture into your prepared tin.  Push it flat and into the corners as this will be the base for your crumble bars.  Bake for just 7 minutes.  This helps firm the base up and makes it easier to spread the jam across it.

Spread the jam over the base.  Then sprinkle over the remainder of the crumble and bake for 25 minutes until golden and delicious!

The hardest part is waiting a few minutes for them to cool because, you know, molten jam.

I made Phil wait a WHOLE day before devouring these because I wanted to get the bars cooled and set in the fridge so that I could cut clean slices for you to see the layers in these crumble bars.  That part is optional.  If you don’t care about clean slices cut and eat with abandon!  Honestly though these are just as delicious at room temperature as they are straight from the fridge.  They’ll just be a little softer if you don’t keep them in the fridge and may not keep as long.  That’s if they don’t get hoovered up by the hungry masses!

These blackberry crumble bars make a great breakfast bar and afternoon snack.  But they are absolutely incredible eaten warm (either fresh or warmed up again) with a dollop of vegan vanilla ice cream.  So.Much.Yum.

Love easy but delicious snacks as much as we do?  Here’s some of our tried and tested favourites (all vegan too!) …

• Healthy Breakfast Muffins
• Chocolate Peanut Butter Flapjack
• Healthy cookies
• Caramel and Chocolate Protein Bites
• Vegan Granola Bars

I’d love to hear from you if you give this Blackberry Crumble Bars recipe a try! Just leave a comment as it’s so helpful and I love to hear how the recipe worked out for you! Thank you so much 🙂

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