Apricot Crumb Bars
Delicious apricot crumb bars with fresh apricot filling sandwiched between buttery and crumbly dough sprinkled with sliced almonds–part pie and part cobbler.
These little beauties are simple to make and a great way to use fresh apricots during the summer. These apricot crumb bars are really easy to make, taste a little sweet & a little tart, and they are so delicious! I drizzled vanilla icing on top of the bars and served them with a bit of vanilla ice cream for the perfect summer dessert that we all enjoyed.
How to Make Apricot Crumb Bars
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line an 8×8-inch baking dish with a bit of parchment paper, if desired. Lightly spray the baking dish and parchment with cooking spray.
To make the crumb bars, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon in a medium bowl. Cut in the butter using a pastry cutter, until the butter mixture resembles coarse sand. Add the beaten egg and mix until the dough starts to hold together, but is still crumbly.
Gently press a little more than half of the crumbly dough firmly into the bottom of the prepared pan to make a crust.
Mix in the sliced almonds with the remaining crumbly dough; set aside.
Prepare the apricots by combining the diced apricots, sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, cardamon, vanilla, and lemon juice together in a small bowl. Mix until well combined. Pour evenly on top of the crust.
Using your hands, press together handfuls of the remaining almond crumb topping to create clumps. Scatter the clumps over the top of the apricot layer leaving some apricot showing through.
Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until lightly browned. Cool completely then chill before cutting and icing.
To make the icing, combine the powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and milk together until creamy and smooth. Drizzle on top of the bars right before serving. Enjoy.
Store remaining iced bars in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Equipment
- 8x8-inch Glass Baking Dish
Ingredients
Crust & Topping:
- 1½ cups flour
- ½ cup white sugar
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- ⅛ tsp cinnamon
- ½ cup cold unsalted butter cut into cubes
- 1 small egg beaten
- ¼ cup sliced almonds
Peach Filling:
- ¼ cup white sugar
- ½ tbsp cornstarch
- ⅛ tsp cinnamon
- ⅛ tsp cardamon
- 6-7 large ripe apricots pitted & diced **Fairly firm apricots with no shriveled skin
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- ½ tsp fresh lemon juice
Icing:
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- ¼ tsp vanilla extract
- ½ tbsp milk more or less for desired consistency
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line an 8×8-inch baking dish with a bit of parchment paper, if desired. Lightly spray the baking dish and parchment with cooking spray.
- To make the crumb bars, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon in a medium bowl. Cut in the butter using a pastry cutter, until the butter mixture resembles coarse sand. Add the beaten egg and mix until the dough starts to hold together, but is still crumbly.
- Gently press a little more than half of the crumbly dough firmly into the bottom of the prepared pan to make a crust.
- Mix in the sliced almonds with the remaining crumbly dough; set aside.
- Prepare the apricots by combining the diced apricots, sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, cardamon, vanilla, and lemon juice together in a small bowl. Mix until well combined. Pour evenly on top of the crust.
- Using your hands, press together handfuls of the remaining almond crumb topping to create clumps. Scatter the clumps over the top of the apricot layer leaving some apricot showing through.
- Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until lightly browned. Cool completely then chill before cutting and icing.
- To make the icing, combine the powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and milk together until creamy and smooth.
- Drizzle on top of the bars right before serving. Enjoy.
- Store remaining iced bars in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
They look excellent! My husband loves streusel cakes and stone fruit. A perfect dessert for him.
Love apricots and anything with that flavor. Unfortunately the fresh apricots here are not so good and very costly. But a friend in CA sent me a huge bag of dried. Can I use dried apricots if I dice them and cook them first?
Caroline,
I haven’t tried it with dried but I think it could work. I would first “plump” the apricots in a little bit of simmering orange juice or water for a few minutes then drain, chop and proceed with recipe. Please let me know how it turns out if you give it a try!
-Pam
There’s no measurement in the ingredients or directions for the quantity of almonds. I didn’t get them at the store because I they weren’t listed and didn’t know I needed them until I was at that step. Thankfully I had some raw whole almonds in the cupboard and was able to chop them and I had to guess on the quantity. I haven’t eaten it yet, but it smells delicious cooking. I will update once we taste it 🙂
Dionne,
Thank you for letting me know! I’ve corrected the recipe to show the 1/4 cup of sliced almonds in the ingredients list.
-Pam