Bring on the summer berries! We had plans to pick raspberries with friends yesterday but we had our first cat crisis (she swallowed a nice long string of yarn) resulting in a trip to the emergency vet (she’s doing fine now!) so we didn’t make it to the berry farm. Our sweet friends brought us some fresh-picked raspberries to console us though and they were so so good. Blueberry picking is coming soon and we can’t wait!

This year I made these blueberry pies bars for the 4th of July. We were in Utah with Dustin’s family and everyone LOVED them. The sour-cream based custard filling is what makes them creamy/tangy/unique. And it takes a lot of self-restraint to not eat all that cookie crumble right off the top! I’ve made them a few times now… even once with frozen berries- don’t bother thawing them, but do add some extra flour and cornstarch so they thicken up. You can double the recipe to fit a 9×13 pan but you’ll have to increase the baking time quite a bit (I would start checking them around an hour in case your oven is extra hot). Let the bars cool before cutting so they can set. I find them most irresistible with a scoop of vanilla ice cream!

Blueberry Pie Crumb Bars

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup unsalted butter, chilled
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
Pinch kosher salt

Filling:
1 egg
1/2 heaping cup sour cream
1/3 cup sugar
2 Tbsp. lemon juice
1 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
4 tsp. cornstarch
1/2 tsp. cinnamon. (optional- I only use the cinnamon in the crust)
2 tsp. vanilla extract (or 1 tsp. vanilla extract and 1/4 tsp. almond extract)
2 cups blueberries

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Spray an 8×8-inch baking pan with cooking spray. Line the pan with parchment paper so that it hangs over on two sides. Spray the parchment.
2. For the crust: In the bowl of a food processor, combine the butter, sugar, flour, cinnamon and salt. Process until the mixture starts to come together and clump, 1 minute. Remove 3/4 cup and reserve; press the remaining crust mixture evenly into the prepared baking pan. Set aside.
3. For the filling: In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg, sour cream, sugar, lemon juice, flour, cornstarch, vanilla (and almond, if using) extract and cinnamon (if using) until smooth. Mix in 1 cup of the blueberries. Pour the filling mixture over the crust, shaking the pan gently to settle the custard and berries. Pour the remaining 1 cup blueberries over the top, spreading them evenly.
4. Take the reserved crust and sprinkle it over the top of the berries, squeezing the mixture in your hands to encourage large lumps.
5. Bake for ~1 hour. Let cool. Remove the bars from the pan and cut into 9 pieces. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Makes an 8×8 pan of bars. 

Adapted from Food Network