I balked when Tom handed me the kilo of blueberries. What would I ever do with so many? I asked aloud. “Freeze them” someone said, “you can never have too many blueberries” someone else chimed in.
Both of them were right but at the time, having nothing particular in mind for what to do with them, I was a little baffled. Silly me, I should have known my favorite food blog would have an answer. Little did I know it would be so good and so captivating for so many people.
Searching the archives of Smitten Kitchen for blueberry recipes I came across several but only one seemed right. I wanted it to be something very portable, something I could take to the office to give to friends and a sizable chunk I could give to Tom for his generosity in providing me with the main ingredient.
The blueberry crumb bars seemed to fit the bill for portability and potentially for using up most of the blueberries. Then, as it turned out, it’s a pretty simple recipe and I had pretty much every ingredient already in my cabinets.
It was already late at night but I got to work anyway and discovered it was quick, easy and portable, just as I wanted it to be. But could something so simple actually taste good? I wondered. The next day and the subsequent ones gave me a pretty definitive answer judging by the amount of times my boyfriend has asked me to remake them and the number of friends who asked for more.
I might even go so far as to say it was one of my most popular desserts ever. Strong words, I know but people just couldn’t stop eating them. Something about the crispy top, lemony crust and juicy (but not soupy) blueberries was addictive. So if you make them, beware, you might just get everyone hooked.
Blueberry Crumb Bars (adapted from Smitten Kitchen)
Crumb & Crust Ingredients
1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 cups (390 grams) all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
Zest of one lemon
1 cup (8 ounces or 225 grams) cold unsalted butter, cut into chunks
1 large egg
Berry Filling Ingredients
Juice of 1 lemon
1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated sugar
4 teaspoons cornstarch
4 cups fresh blueberries
1) Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease a 9×13 inch pan.
2) In a medium bowl, stir together 1 cup sugar, 3 cups flour, baking powder, salt, and lemon zest. Use a fork or pastry cutter to blend in the butter and egg. Dough will be crumbly.
3) Pat half of dough into the prepared pan.
4) In another bowl, stir together the sugar, cornstarch and lemon juice. Mix with the blueberries to coat.
5) Sprinkle the blueberry mixture evenly over the crust.
6) Crumble remaining dough over the berry layer.
7) Bake in preheated oven for 45 minutes, or until top is slightly brown. Cool completely before cutting into squares.
