These lemon raspberry crumb bars are made with fresh or frozen raspberries. They have a buttery shortbread crust, an almond crumble topping, and a jammy raspberry filling, making them the perfect sweet and zesty treat for spring and summer!
Adapted from my peach crumb bars, these raspberry almond bars are made with short bread crust, a jammy frozen raspberry filling, and an almond crumble on top.
The bars are rich and sweet, but the tangy raspberry still shines through. Pair it with sliced almonds and almond extract for raspberry almond bars, or omit the almonds and keep it classic.
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Recipe highlights
- Rich and buttery, with a sweet, tangy, and gently nutty raspberry filling.
- Makes 16 2-inch raspberry bars in about 15 minutes of active time.
- The bars freeze well!
- Made with frozen raspberries but also works with fresh raspberries.
Ingredients
- Frozen raspberries: Two cups of fresh or frozen raspberries. I tested this recipe with frozen raspberries because they are more consistent (and often more budget-friendly) than fresh raspberries. If you have access to fresh raspberries, these will work too. The filling will be slightly less jammy, as fresh raspberries hold their shape better than frozen.
- Butter: Unsalted butter works best here.
- Corn starch: This ingredient is very important as it thickens up the raspberry filling. Although I didn't test it here, I believe that arrowroot starch would be a good swap if that's what you already have on hand.
- Almond extract and almonds: This gives a subtle almond flavor that highlights the toasted almonds in the topping. I use sliced almonds, but roughly chopped almonds also work here.
- Lemon juice and zest: From one large lemon. I don't recommend bottled lemon juice here because the lemon zest adds a lot of lemon flavor.
- Streusel topping: This is optional, but powdered sugar mixed with a splash of milk or lemon juice adds a lot to the appearance of the bars.
Step-by-step instructions
Don't skip this step if using frozen raspberries! Transfer the frozen raspberries to a sieve. Let thaw in the sieve for at least one hour. This drains off excess liquid, which makes the raspberry filling jammier. I did test the recipe without this step and found the filling to be much softer because of the excess liquid.
Make the shortbread crust in an 8x8-inch baking dish. For easy removal, I recommend lining it with parchment paper. Add sliced butter, flour, sugar, salt to a medium bowl. Use a pastry cutter to cut the butter into tiny pieces. Mix until the mixture resembles medium crumbs.
Pat the pie crust into the parchment paper paper lined pan. It will be quite dry and crumbly but will hold together enough to pat into the pan. Bake on the middle oven rack at 350F for 12-15 minutes, or until the crust is golden around the edges and starting to puff up. It won't be 100% cooked through.
While the shortbread bakes, prepare the raspberry filling. In another mixing bowl, stir together the drained raspberries, sugar, lemon juice, lemon zest, almond extract, and corn starch.
Make the crumble topping in another bowl by mixing together the flour, almonds, melted butter, and pinch of salt. It should have a crumbly texture.
Spread the raspberry filling onto the shortbread crust, then top with the almond crumb topping.
Bake at 350F for 35-40 minutes, or until the crumb topping is golden and the raspberry filling is no longer jiggling when shaken.
Let cool completely before drizzling with the powdered sugar glaze.
Equipment
- Parchment paper: This makes removing the bars from the pan a lot easier. I like to buy individual 8-inch sheets of parchment, but you can also cut sheets down with a scissors.
- 8x8-inch baking dish: This is my go-to baking dish. I use it for all of my snack cakes and like that it heats evenly.
- Pastry cutter: This makes cutting butter into the flour for the shortbread crust much easier. If you don't have a pastry cutter, you can use your fingers (I often do this for my vegan biscuits) or use a fork.
More fruit desserts
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Raspberry Crumb Bars with Almonds
Equipment
- 8x8-inch baking dish
- Parchment Paper optional
Ingredients
Shortbread
- ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter sliced; butter should be cold!
- 1 cup all purpose flour spooned and leveled into measuring cup
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- pinch table salt
Raspberry Filling
- 2 cups (1 pound) frozen raspberries see notes for fresh
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice from ½ large lemon
- lemon zest from one medium lemon
- 1 heaping tablespoon corn starch (roughly 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon)
- ½ teaspoon almond extract optional
Crumb Topping
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter melted
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- ⅓ cup sliced almonds
Instructions
Drain the Frozen Raspberries
- If using frozen raspberries: Transfer the frozen raspberries to a fine mesh sieve. Let thaw in the sieve for at least one hour, stirring a few times to help the raspberries drain. This is an important step to thicken up the raspberry filling.
- After draining the raspberries, preheat the oven to 350F. Line an 8x8-inch baking dish with parchment paper or grease well with butter.
Make the Shortbread Crust
- To a mixing bowl, add 1 stick sliced cold butter, 1 cup flour, ¼ cup sugar, and a pinch of salt. Use a pastry cutter, forks, or your fingers to cut the butter into small pieces, until the mixture resembles medium crumbs.
- Pat the crust into the parchment paper paper lined pan. It will be quite dry and crumbly but should hold together enough to pat into the pan. Bake on the middle oven rack at 350F for 12-15 minutes, or until the crust is golden around the edges and starting to puff up. It won't be 100% cooked through.
Raspberry Filling & Crumb Topping
- While the shortbread bakes, prepare the raspberry filling. In another mixing bowl, stir together 16 ounces of drained raspberries, ¼ cup sugar, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, lemon zest, 1 heaping tablespoon corn starch, and ½ teaspoon almond extract.
- Make the crumble topping in another bowl by mixing together 1 cup of flour, 1 stick (½ cup) melted butter, ⅓ cup sugar, and ⅓ cup sliced almonds. It should have a crumbly texture.
Assemble & Bake
- Spread the raspberry filling onto the shortbread crust, then crumble the almond topping across the top.
- Bake at 350F for 35-40 minutes, or until the crumb topping is golden and the raspberry filling is no longer jiggling when shaken.
- Let cool at room temperature for an hour before transferring to the fridge to cool completely. Drizzle with the powdered sugar glaze once fully cooled. Slice and enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Raspberries: One pound (16 ounces) is equal to roughly 2 cups of raspberries. Fresh raspberries also work but will have a less jammy texture.
- These bars can be made with almond extract and almonds.
- To freeze, let cool completely then slice and freeze in an airtight container for up to 3 months.
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