These Strawberry Bars feature a buttery shortbread crust, a creamy strawberry filling, and a crunchy crumble topping, and are the ultimate strawberry dessert.
Inspired by my recipe for Blueberry Pie Bars, this recipe replaces blueberries, with juicy, ripe strawberries to create an irresistible spring dessert.
If you are looking for an easy spring dessert recipe, these Strawberry Bars are the perfect option.
Just like seasonal strawberries shine in recipes like Strawberry Cheesecake Pancakes, Strawberry Spinach Salad, and Strawberries and Cream Oatmeal, juicy strawberries are the star in these Strawberry Pie Bars.
Reasons to Love Strawberry Bars
- Perfect Flavor. From the creamy filling filled with sweet strawberries to the flaky shortbread crust to the buttery streusel topping, these Strawberry Bars are sweet, bright, and irresistible.
- Easy Dessert Recipe. A three-layer dessert may sound complicated, but this dessert comes together easily with 10 minutes of prep time.
- Party-Perfect. Not only does everyone love these strawberry bars, but just like Homemade Fudgy Brownies and Mini Cheesecakes, they transport well and can be eaten without silverware.
Notes on Ingredients
- Strawberries: This recipe must be made with fresh, ripe strawberries. When defrosted, frozen strawberries will be too soft and give off too much liquid, which will prevent the bars from setting up correctly.
- Sour Cream: You can opt to use full-fat or reduced-fat sour cream. I do not recommend using fat-free sour cream, as there are added ingredients that change the consistency and taste of the sour cream. If desired, you can also swap out the sour cream for plain Greek yogurt.
- Egg: The egg will help the filling to set up, but can be omitted if needed. Just keep in mind that the bars will not set up as well and may need to be enjoyed with a fork.
- Lemon: Adding the zest and juice of fresh lemon to the filling helps to brighten up flavors and make everything pop.
- Butter: This recipe is best to use cold, cubed, unsalted butter.
How to Make Strawberry Bars
The following tips are provided to help you achieve perfect results. You will find the detailed instructions in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Step One: Prepare Shortbread. The shortbread forms the base and the crumble topping of the strawberry bars and comes together easily using a food processor or with two forks.
Step Two: Bake the Shortbread Crust. Partially baking the crust for 15 minutes helps to keep the crust keeps it flaky and tender. If you skip the prebaking, the strawberry filling can soak into the crust, making it soggy and dense.
Step Three: Prepare the Strawberry Filling. While the strawberry bar base is baking, prepare the filling by mixing the sour cream, remaining sugar, vanilla, egg, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Gently fold in the strawberries.
Step Four: Layer the Strawberry Bars. When the crust comes out of the oven, pour the strawberry batter over the crust and then sprinkle the reserved ½ cup crust batter over the berry mixture evenly.
Step Five: Bake. Return bars to the oven and bake for 45-50 minutes or until pie bars are set and crumble over top is slightly browned.
Step Six: Cool. Allow to cool for at least an hour before slicing. I find the bars tasted even better the next day if you can wait that long!
Storage Instructions
Strawberry Pie Bars should be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 4-5 days. I don't recommend freezing because strawberries can release a lot of liquid as they defrost.
More Fruit Dessert Recipes
If you enjoyed these Strawberry Bars, I would love for you to leave a comment and review below. I love hearing from you!
Strawberry Bars
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup granulated sugar divided
- dash of salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter cubed and cold
- ½ cup full-fat sour cream or plain Greek yogurt
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 egg slightly beaten
- 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 4 cups fresh strawberries hulled and diced
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350℉. Grease an 8x8 baking dish or line it with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a food processor, combine flour, ¼ cup sugar, and a dash of salt. Pulse together until pastry dough is crumbly and butter is evenly distributed. Remove ½ cup mixture for later.
- With the remaining batter, press the mixture evenly into the glass baking dish. Bake for 15 minutes.
- While crust is baking, mix together yogurt, remaining ¼ cup sugar, vanilla, egg, lemon juice, and lemon zest together. Gently fold in the strawberries.
- When the crust comes out of the oven, pour the strawberry batter over the crust and sprinkle the reserved ½ cup crust batter over the berry mixture evenly.
- Return to the oven and bake for 45-50 minutes or until pie bars are set and crumble over top is slightly browned.
- Allow the bars to cool for at least an hour before slicing or refrigerate overnight before enjoying.
Laurie
Delicious! I had 2 quarts of ripe strawberries to use up quickly, so I was after a recipe that used more than the usual shortcake and had more shelf life. Excellent flavor - I love that it’s not excessively sweet. Using parchment paper (or, in my case, a mini silicone baking sheet) is key to prevent fruit bars from becoming super glued to the pan. I made 1 1/2x the recipe as the only glass pan I had was 11 x 7”, worked perfectly.
Kristen Chidsey
Thanks for sharing Laurie! So happy to hear you enjoyed the bars!
Donna Burke
These are amazing. The streusel topping is the best!