Blueberry and Lemon Crumb Bars (No Sugar)

These Blueberry and Lemon Crumb Bars are sweet and nutty with a thick luscious berry jam sandwiched between a homemade base and crumbly crispy top.  Just 7 simple ingredients are needed to make these healthy berry crumble bars that naturally sweetened with no added sugar.

Recipe Highlights

• Makes 9 generous sized portions and its dessert under 200 calories!
• Naturally sweetened with Monkfruit
• So much healthier than other versions that are loaded with added sugars
• Perfect as a dessert served with sugar free custard or sugar free ice cream
• Keeps in the fridge for upto 5 days
• Ideal to make ahead of time for dinner parties and BBQ's
• No fussing around with gelatin to thicken the jam
• The jam filling is sweet, sticky and naturally thickened using chia seeds
• It looks impressive, but it deceptively simple to make, just like this healthy no added sugar Apple Crumble.

Ingredients

What to do with a lot of berries?  If you have a bag of frozen berries stuffed in the back of your freezer, this is a great recipe to make

This recipe replaces many of the ingredients traditionally found in berry crumble bars, like white flour, brown sugar, white sugar, and cream cheese with healthier options without compromising on taste, flavour or texture.

There are considerably fewer calories in this blueberry crumb bar thanks to it being naturally sweetened with monkfruit.  Each generous sized serving is less than 200 calories.  Using regular sugar could easily put this decadent dessert treat upwards of 400 calories. 

Swapping out regular sugar for healthier substitutes is a smart and easy way to still enjoy sweet comfort foods and satisfy sweet cravings without the after effects.

Check out my Chocolate and Coconut Bars, Chocolate Oat Granola Bars, Easy Lemon Bars and No Bake Chocolate Peanut Bars for more no added sugar treats.

Ingredient Notes

• Almond Meal/Almond Flour:  The packet I used for this recipe had Almond Meal on the label and, however sometimes it can be called Almond Flour. I think its best to use the variety that is more coarsely ground as opposed to the more finely ground flour types as it gives more texture and nutty flavour.
• Granulated Sweetener:  I used granulated monkfruit sweetener that measures like sugar in this recipe.  It blends in perfectly with the base, filling and crumb topping to create the perfect level of sweetness with no bitter aftertaste.  Alternatively you could also use Stevia, or any other sweetener that measures like sugar.

• Berries:  I used a combination of frozen raspberries and blueberries to create that gorgeous deep reddish/purple jam.  I love using a mix of berries as it gives different textures to the jam, however using just blueberries or raspberries on their own is also a great option that would work equally well.
• Chia Seeds:  The chia seeds act as a natural thickener for the jam so there is no gelatin or other jam setting agent required.  Thickening the jam to the perfect consistency is as easy as soaking the chia seeds in water so they double or triple in size the add them to the berry mixture!  I used black chia seeds as they are the most common, but feel free to use white if that if what you have on hand.

• Lemon:  Just the zest of the lemon is used in this recipe as it has lots of flavour helps to balance out the sweetness and the tartness or the berries to create a taste that is just right.  I don't use the juice of the lemon and find that its not needed.  Make sure to buy lemons with a good clean skin since this is part you'll be using.
• Butter:  this is essential to create the base as it acts as a binder bring the ingredients together, and for the crumb topping to create those little mountains of crunch that make the crumb topping so delicious.  Whilst full fat butter will provide more flavour, to make it the healthiest possible, you could use a low fat butter.
• Coconut:  Coconut is used in the crumble top to add texture and volume and it provides a lovely coconutty flavour to contrast with the nuttiness of the almond meal and the sweet and tart berry filling.

How To Make

Base

1. Mix: Mix almond flour, lemon zest, granulated erythritol and melted butter for the crust.
2. Layer: Next, place the grainy mixture into the prepared tray and press it down evenly.
3. Bake: Bake the crust for 7 to 8 minutes or until the sides are getting brownish.

Filling

4. Prepare: Prepare the jam by activating the chía seeds with ½ cup of water. Let the seeds release their mucilage for about 30 minutes. The result will be a gelatinous paste.

5. Make: Place the chía paste and the rest of the ingredients of the jam into a blender or food processor and pulse to combine. Different berries will have different levels of "tartness". Therefore I recommend tasting the jam at this stage for sweetness and adjust to your taste by adding a little more granulated sweetener in if required.
6. Transfer the jam to a pan over medium heat. Without stirring, wait until the jam thickens. The excess liquid needs to evaporate, so there's no need to stir, however do keep an eye on it to make sure it doesn't burn. The jam will develop its thickest consistency when cold. Let it cool while you make the crumble.

Crumble Top

7. Mix: Mix all crumble ingredients except butter.  Add butter chopped into cubes. Use your hands to combine the ingredients until a crumbly consistency.

8. Next, spread the jam onto the base, and crumble on top of it.
9. Bake these bars at 160 C/350F for 15 minutes or until the crumble is golden.
10. Remove from heat and let it cool to room temperature for the jam to completely set, about two hours is ideal. You can speed up this process in the fridge.

Recipe Tips

• Frozen Berries:  they don't need to be defrosted before making the jam as they will go into a blender or food processor to be blitzed.
• Fresh Berries:  Fresh berries can also be used instead of frozen and to use fresh ones, follow the steps.
• Jam:  Make sure that the Jam has cooled before assembling.  This ensure that any excess liquid is soaked up and the jam has thickened properly.
• Alternative Topping Idea:  Swap the almond meal in the crumb topping for oats for a different more chewy texture
• Storage:  Store bars in the fridge in an air tight container for upto 5 days

Serving Options

• Sugar Free or Low Sugar Vanilla Ice Cream
• Sugar Free or low sugar Custard
• Crème Fraiche or Double Cream
• Thick and creamy Vanilla yoghurt
• Or enjoy on its own with those berry, nutty and coconut flavours shing through

Theses Blueberry and Lemon crumble bars are often served as a dessert in our house, but there's no reason why it can't also be a snack to enjoy with your morning coffee or as an after lunch treat. 

These bars keep their shape when stored in the fridge and the jam won't leak out or disappear into the base.  These healthy berry bars are so good and easy to make ahead, you'll be wanting to keep a stash of them permanently on hand to satisfy those after dinner cravings.