You’ve heard of lemon bars. Now, get ready for sweet-yet-tangy pineapple bars! These pineapple crumb bars bring the taste of summer right to your dinner table.
Prep time: 20 min // Total time: 2 hours 30 min (includes cooling)
You’ll need:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/3 cups granulated sugar, divided
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
- 4 cups chopped fresh pineapple (about 22 1/2 oz.)
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (from 1 lemon)
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Lightly coat a 9-inch square baking pan with cooking spray. Beat flour, butter, vanilla, 1 cup of the sugar, and 1/4 teaspoon of the salt with a heavy-duty stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment on medium-low speed until mixture resembles coarse crumbs, about 1 minute. Reserve 1 cup of the crumb mixture in a small bowl for the topping. Press remaining crumb mixture evenly into bottom of prepared pan.
2. Bake crust until golden brown, about 18 minutes. Transfer pan to a wire rack, and cool crust completely, about 30 minutes. (Do not turn off oven.)
3. Meanwhile, gently stir together chopped pineapple, cornstarch, lemon juice, and remaining 1/3 cup sugar and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a bowl until thoroughly combined. Spread pineapple mixture evenly over cooled crust.
4. Sprinkle leftover crumbs over pineapple mixture on crust. Bake at 375°F until the filling is bubbly and the topping is lightly browned, 45 to 55 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack. Cool completely, about 1 hour, and cut into 16 squares.
Source: Adapted from a recipe by Southern Living