Strawberry Crumb Bars

Fresh strawberries are one of my favorite summer fruits.  I could eat them all day!  And well, sometimes I do. It's just too easy.  And while yes, they are better fresh, they are still good baked up into these crumbly bars.

Yes, they are crumbly, but it's so tasty.  I made these up for my dear sister-in-law's baby shower she had last month.  (she just had a cute, TINY (5lb1oz tiny) baby girl last week!)  and they were a big hit!  Along with the Double Chocolate Cream Cheese Bars, and Gooey Coconut Dream Bars, you can't go wrong!

Strawberry Crumb Bars
source: adapted from Smitten Kitchen, via Annie’s Eats

• 1½ cups sugar, divided
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• ¼ tsp salt
• Zest of 1 lemon
• 2 sticks (½ lb) cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• 1 large egg
• 4 cups fresh strawberries, hulled and quartered
• 4 tsp cornstarch
• Juice of 1 lemon

Preheat the oven to 375° F.  Grease a 13×9 inch pan; set aside. In a medium bowl, combine 1 cup of the sugar, the baking powder and flour.  Mix in the salt and the lemon zest, and stir together with a fork.  Cut in the butter and egg with a pastry blender (or two knives if you don’t have one) until the largest chunks are about pea-sized.  The mixture should be crumbly without much loose flour.  Spread about half of the dough mixture in an even layer over the bottom of the prepared pan and press down firmly to form the bottom crust. In another bowl, stir together the remaining sugar, cornstarch and lemon juice.  Gently mix in the strawberries with a rubber spatula until combined.  Spread the berry mixture evenly over the bottom crust.  Crumble the remaining dough over the top of the berries.  Bake for about 45 minutes or until the top is slightly golden brown.  Cool completely before cutting into squares and serving.