What's Baking: Blueberry Crumble Bars

These blueberry crumble bars are what summer dreams are made of. 

What do you do when you pick 10+ pounds of blueberries two weekends in a row? You freeze about 9.5 pounds of them. But, you also save plenty to eat fresh -- and to use in this delicious blueberry crumble bar recipe, of course.

Blueberry Crumble Bars

makes about 16 small bars

For the fruit filling:

4 cups fresh or frozen blueberries

juice of one lemon

3 tablespoons white sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch

For the dough:

1 cup white sugar

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

2 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

zest from one lemon

1 cup (two sticks/16 tablespoons) unsalted butter, chilled and cut into small cubes

1 egg

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a 9"x9" baking dish with parchment paper and lightly oil with cooking spray. Set aside.

2. In a medium bowl, combine the blueberries, lemon juice, sugar, and cornstarch. Stir gently to combine the ingredients.

3. In a large bowl, stir together the sugar, cinnamon, salt, and flour.

4. Mix in the lemon zest.

5. Use a pastry cutter to cut the butter into the flour mixture. Add in the egg and blend in with the pastry cutter. Dough will be crumbly.

6. Pat 2/3 of the dough into the prepped baking dish. Top with the blueberry filling. Sprinkle the remaining dough crumbles over top of the blueberry layer.

7. Bake for 60 minutes, or until the top of the crumble is just beginning to brown. Cool on a wire rack for 30 minutes. Cover and place in the refrigerator to chill. These crumb bars are easier to cut after they have been chilled.