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Raspberry Oatmeal Bars

These Raspberry Oatmeal Bars feature a buttery shortbread crust, a layer of tart raspberry preserves and fresh raspberries, and a sweet oatmeal crumble topping, all finished with a simple almond icing. They're the perfect balance of sweet, tart, and crumbly!
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Total Time 2 hours 25 minutes
Servings: 9
Cuisine: Chinese
Calories: 120

Ingredients
  

Crust
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 0.33 cup confectioners' sugar
  • 0.5 cup cold butter, diced 1 stick
Filling
  • 1 cup raspberry preserves
  • 6 ounces fresh raspberries
Oatmeal Crumble Topping
  • 0.5 cup cold butter, diced 1 stick
  • 0.75 cup all-purpose flour
  • 0.33 cup confectioners' sugar
  • 0.5 cup quick oats
Almond Icing
  • 1 cup confectioners' sugar
  • 1 tablespoon whole milk plus more if needed
  • 0.5 teaspoon almond extract

Method
 

Preparation Steps
  1. Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Spray an 8x8-inch baking dish with nonstick spray or line with parchment paper.
  2. In a large bowl, blend the flour, confectioners' sugar, and cold butter for the crust. You can use a food processor or pastry cutter, but using your hands works well. Mix until the butter is no bigger than pea-sized pieces and the ingredients are well incorporated.
  3. Press the crust mixture evenly into the prepared baking dish.
  4. Bake the crust for 12-15 minutes, or until the edges just begin to turn golden. Remove from the oven.
  5. Spread the raspberry preserves evenly over the baked crust. Then, place the fresh raspberries evenly over the preserves.
  6. For the topping: In a medium bowl, combine the cold butter, flour, confectioners' sugar, and quick oats. Using your hands, sift the flour over the butter and start breaking down each piece into pea-sized pieces to create a crumbly mixture.
  7. Crumble the oatmeal topping mixture evenly over the raspberry filling.
  8. Bake for 45-50 more minutes, or until the crumble topping is a light golden brown. Let the bars cool at room temperature for at least 30 minutes. Then, place them in the refrigerator to chill for at least 2 hours before adding icing.
  9. For the icing: In a medium bowl, combine the confectioners' sugar, milk, and almond extract. Add more milk, one teaspoon at a time, until you reach your desired drizzling consistency.
  10. Drizzle the almond icing over the chilled bars. Serve immediately, or keep chilled in the refrigerator if preferred.

Notes

Allowing the bars to chill completely before icing helps them set up properly, making them easier to slice and serve. If you don't have almond extract, you can omit it or use a little vanilla extract, though almond complements the raspberries beautifully.