I live in Florida permanently now, and although there are times when I miss experiencing the seasons, I certainly do miss the cold winters! I love Florida winters and appreciate buying locally grown produce such as tomatoes, greens, and squash year-round. It does take a little getting used to the change in timing for some fruits and vegetables, though. The peak of our strawberry season is late February or early March, and you can find many strawberry festivals across central Florida during this time.
When strawberries are in season, I enjoy them as much as possible. I love eating them raw, sliced with a little sugar and balsamic vinegar, but I also love to bake with them. These bars are easy to make, taste great, and freeze well. You can drizzle the tops with a little glaze or leave them plain. I also love a little powdered sugar sprinkled on top!
Deborah Mele
Ingredients
- 3 Cups All-purpose Flour
- 1 Teaspoon Baking Powder
- Pinch of Salt
- 1 Cup Cold, Unsalted Butter, Cubed
- 2 Large Eggs At Room Temperature
- 1 Cup Light Brown Sugar
- 2 Teaspoons Vanilla Extract
- 3/4 Cup Finely Chopped Walnuts
Filling:
- 4 Cups Chopped Strawberries
- 1/3 Cup granulated Sugar
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons Cornstarch
- 1 Teaspoon Lemon Zest
Lemon Drizzle: (Optional)
- 1 Cup Powdered Sugar
- 2 Teaspoons Lemon Juice
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Line the bottom of a 9×13 inch pan with parchment paper with overhang, and spray sides and bottom with baking spray.
- Whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium sized bowl.
- In a food processor, add the butter and flour mixture and pulse until you have pea sized tumbles.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the eggs, brown sugar and vanilla.
- Add the egg mixture to the food processor and pulse just until it goes together as a dough.
- Remove 2 cups of the dough and set aside for topping.
- Press the remaining dough into the bottom of your prepared pan.
- In a bowl. Stir together the filling ingredients, and then spread them across your dough.
- Add the walnuts to the remaining dough, and stir to mix.
- Crumble the dough mixture over the top of the strawberries.
- Bake for 45 minutes or until the bars are golden brown, and the filling is bubbly.
- Cool completely.
- Stir together the drizzle mixture if using until blended.
- Use a fork to drizzle the glaze over the top of the bars.
- Refrigerate to set the glaze, then slice and enjoy!
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 9
Serving Size: 2 Bars
Amount Per Serving:
Calories: 600Total Fat: 29gSaturated Fat: 14gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 13gCholesterol: 96mgSodium: 96mgCarbohydrates: 80gFiber: 3gSugar: 43gProtein: 8g