I don't know about you, but we have been going through the fresh berries around our house like crazy! Between the three of us, we have been eating pints of blueberries, blackberries, and strawberries by the truckload it seems! Parks will sit and eat an entire pint of any given berry if I would let him which is maybe a little excessive, but at least it's fruit and not a unhealthy snack instead! Summertime blueberries are the sweetest and they are perfect for making my healthy vanilla chia blueberry crumble bars!
Y'all already know that I only make easy desserts because I am NOT a baker by nature so anything I do decide to bake is going to be simple enough for anybody to master! That's why crumble bars are the perfect substitution for any pie craving that you have if you aren't confident in the pie rolling department...which I am not!
I made a few healthy swaps when creating this recipe so that you can satisfy your cravings without feeling too bad about eating one...or two.
I love nothing more than eating one of these bars while I sip on coffee for an easy breakfast that is perfect for parents who are chasing toddlers around annnnddd guess what? Your toddlers will gobble them up too! That's called winning people.
Do yourself a favor and make these bars while blueberries are in season!
Ingredients:
1 Cup of Rolled Old Fashioned Oats
1 Cup Whole Wheat Flour
1/4 Cup Brown Sugar or Coconut Sugar
1 Tsp. Baking Powder
1 Tsp. Cinnamon
1/8 Tsp. Salt
1/2 Cup Melted Coconut Oil
1 Egg Yolk
2 Cups of Fresh Blueberries
1 Tsp. Vanilla Bean Powder or Vanilla Extract
1/4 Cup Chia Seeds
1 Tbsp. Fresh Lemon Juice
1 Tbsp. Honey
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a food processor, combine oats, flour, brown sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, salt and melted coconut oil and process until crumbly.
Remove 1/3 of the crumble to save for the topping.
Add an egg yolk to the remaining crumble in the food processor and process one more time until well combined.
Meanwhile heat blueberries, vanilla bean powder, lemon juice and honey over medium heat until the blueberries burst and start to create the filling consistency and then reduce the heat.
Add in chia seeds and stir and cook until the mixture thickens, about 5-10 minutes.
Press the crumble mixture left in the food processor into a parchment lined square cake pan in one even layer.
Pour the blueberry vanilla chia filling over the bottom crumble layer in and spread into an even layer.
Take the reserved crumble mixture and sprinkle over top.
Bake for 25-30 minutes until golden brown.
Let cool completely on a wire rack.
Slice into bars and serve immediately or store in an air tight container for up to a week.
Just stop what you are doing and make these bars. You can thank me later! :)
