Hi there! How’s winter going? It’s been raining in Barcelona for some days! So just to put the summer mode on I've done some strawberry bars (while I eat them I'll pretend that today is a sunny day)!
They taste as delicious as they look! The original recipe (from the book "Home Baked Comfort") calls for fresh raspberries, but if you don't have raspberries you can always use strawberries like I've done!
Hope you enjoy them! Happy week to everyone!
Strawberry bars
Makes about 12 bars
For the crust:
3 cups (470 g) all-purpose flour
3/4 cup (185 g) granulated sugar
3/4 cup (185 g) firmly packed brown sugar
1/ tsp kosher salt
grated zest o 1 lemon
1 + 1/2 cups (375 g) cold unsalted butter, cut into chunks
For the filling:
4 cups (500 g) strawberries
1/3 (90 g) cup granulated sugar
1 tbsp cornstarch
For the glaze:
1 + 1/2 (180 g) cups sifted confectioners' sugar
5 tbsp (80 ml) heavy cream
1/2 tsp pure almond extract
Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350ºF (180ºC). Butter or oil a 9- or 10-inch (23/25 cm) square baking pan.
To make the crust, in a bowl, combine the flour, granulated and brown sugars, salt, and lemon zest. Add the butter and, using a pastry blender or 2 table knives, cut into the flour mixture until the butter is the size of a small pea.
Transfer three-fourths of the crust mixture to the prepared pan and press firmly to make an even layer on the bottom and lightly up the sides. Bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes. Set the crust aside to cool while you make the filling. Chill the remainder of the crust mixture in the refrigerator.
To make the filling, in a saucepan, stir together the stawberries, granulated sugar and cornstarch. Simmer over medium heat, stirring often, until the sugar dissolves and the berries are juicy but not completely broken down, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and let cool.
Spread the filling over the partially baked crust. Crumble the chilled crust mixture over the filling. Bake until golden and bubbly, about 25 minutes. Let cool completely in the pan on a wire rack.
To make the glaze, in a bowl, combine the confectioners' sugar, cream, and almond extract. Whisk the ingredients together until combined. Fit a piping bag with a small, plain tip, and fill it with the glaze. Pipe over the top in a crisscross patern. Refrigerate until chilled, at least 1 hour. Cut into bars.
