Raspberry Crumble Bars

David usually does dessert at our house which means chocolate and peanut butter are a guarantee. So, I am surprised he actually really likes these and has asked me to make them. They are really good.

Filling ingredients:

3 cups of fresh or frozen raspberries
1 tablespoon fresh squeezed lemon juice
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch

Crumble ingredients:

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 cups rolled oats (quick cooking preferred)
1 cup of packed light brown sugar
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, cut into 12 pieces
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Garnishes (optional):

Whipped cream
Scoop of vanilla ice cream

Filling preparation:

Combine raspberries and lemon juice in a medium saucepan, cook over medium heat until fruit is soft and tender, about 8-10 minutes. In a separate bowl whisk together sugar and cornstarch. Add to fruit mixture and continue to cook over med-high heat until it comes to a boil. Boil until thickened, approximately 2 minutes and remove from heat. Spoon into a bowl and set aside.

Crust preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly butter a 9 X 13 inch cake pan. Combine all crust ingredients in a food processor and pulse until mixture has a course, crumbly texture. Reserve 1 1/2 cups of this mixture in a separate bowl and layer the remaining mix evenly over the bottom of the prepared pan, pat gently. Spoon fruit filling onto the crust and spread evenly to cover the crust surface. Sprinkle the reserved 1 1/2 cups crumble mixture over the surface of the fruit filling. Bake approximately 30 minutes or until the top is golden.

Yield: Approximately 16 large bars