Strawberry Peach Basil Bars
Some ingredient combinations make people a bit skeptical when you mention them. But then, they bite into whatever it is you made and they completely forget about their doubts.
These bars definitelay have that reaction. I love basil in desserts (and cocktails), and I’ve had this combination before in these Strawberry Peach Basil Cupcakes. So, clearly, I had no doubt these bars would be amazing.
I actually started with this Blueberry Crumb Bar recipe, but I was multi-tasking while the ingredients were in the mixer, so the crumb mixture turned into a dough. No worries though, the bars still came out amazing. My favorite bites were the ones with a lot of basil and I decided the next time I make these, I’ll bump up the amount of basil in them.
One Year Ago: Homemade Oatmeal Cream Pies
Four Years Ago: Cookies and Cream Cupcakes
Strawberry Peach Basil Bars
Yield: 24 bars
Ingredients:
For the Dough:
3 cups flour
1 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 cup butter, cold
1 egg
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
For the Filling:
3 cups peeled, diced peaches
2 cups diced strawberries
1/4 cup basil, chiffonaded
Juice of one lemon
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp cardamom
1/4 tsp salt
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease a 9x13 inch pan.
For the Dough: In a medium bowl, stir together 1 cup sugar, 3 cups flour, and baking powder. Mix in salt and cinnamon, if desired. Use a fork or pastry cutter to blend in the shortening and egg. Dough will be crumbly. Pat half of dough into the prepared pan.
For the Filling: In medium bowl, gently toss diced peaches and lemon juice together; set aside.
In a separate small bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Pour over the peaches and mix gently.
Spread the filling evenly over the crust. Crumble the remaining dough over the filling layer.
Bake in preheated oven for 45 minutes, or until top is slightly brown. Cool completely before cutting into squares.
Dough recipe from AllRecipes.com, filling adapted from Sweet Pea's Kitchen and The First Kitchen
I am Jen the Beantown Baker. Engineer by day and baking maven by night. Hubby serves as my #1 fan and official taste tester. We got hitched back in 2006. Barefoot. In the sand. With the waves crashing behind us. It was one of the best decisions we’ve ever made. 
This looks so homey and delicious!
RDQ: where should I add the cranberries? did you substitute them for the raisins? can i use fresh cranberries?
Sorry – I updated the recipe to reflect that I used dried cranberries in place of the raisins.
Looks just delicious! I’m crazy lately about cranberries too. Talk about a versatile fruit! I just used them this evening to make a cranberry-apple conserve that served as the sauce for almond-crusted pork tenderloin. It was a big hit.
I also wonder if you can use fresh cranberries since they are in season!
You could definitely make this with fresh cranberries if you wanted.
How long did you bake this if you halved it in a 8 by 8 pan? So excited to try it 🙂
I think I started checking it at 30 minutes and left it in for about 45 based on the color of the top layer.
I’ve seen this recipe around before but it never fails to look so delicious! Gorgeous flavours 🙂
Me again. It is DELICIOUS! I halved the recipe and used 1 cup of fresh cranberries, though I think I could have used more.
Thanks so much!
Glad to hear it Lisa! I will definitely have to try this with fresh cranberries next time I make it.