Get the Recipe: Small Batch Peach Crumb Bars Recipe
Small batch peach crumb bars are made with three layers: a brown butter shortbread crumb cookie base, fresh sliced peaches, and crumbly streusel. The recipe is made in a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan and serves 2 to 4 people.
Ingredients
For The Brown Butter Shortbread Crust
- ½ cup plus 1 Tablespoon (2.5 ounces or 71 grams) all-purpose flour
- 2 ½ Tablespoons (0.65 ounces or 18 grams) confectioners’ sugar, sifted if necessary
- 4 Tablespoons 4 Tablespoons (2 ounces or 57 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- pinch kosher salt
For The Streusel
- ½ cup (2.25 ounces or 64 grams) all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup (1.85 ounces or 52 grams) light OR dark brown sugar
- pinch ground cinnamon
- pinch kosher salt
- 4 Tablespoons (2 ounces or 57 grams) unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
Assembly
- 2 to 3 medium peaches
Equipment
- pie weights
Instructions
- Prep your pan and oven. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly spray a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan with cooking spray and line it with parchment paper, leaving a 2-inch overhang on the pan’s two long sides. Lightly spray the parchment, too.
- Make the brown butter shortbread crust. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the flour, sugar, and salt. Beat on low until combined. Add the butter and beat on low until the dough clumps around the paddle and/or the sides of the bowl, 2 to 3 minutes.Transfer the dough to the prepared pan and use a tart tamper or your hands to press it evenly over the bottom of the pan, all the way to the edges. Place a sheet of parchment over the dough and fill it with pie weights.
- Bake the crust. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the crust is golden brown.
- Meanwhile, make the streusel. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and sal. Add the melted butter and use a rubber spatula to stir until a crumbly mixture forms with some large pieces still intact. Do not overmix. Use two butter knives to cut the dough in a criss cross motion until small crumbs form. Place the bowl in the refrigerator, uncovered, while you prep the peaches.
- Prep the peaches. Peel and core the peaches. Finely chop the peaches into ¼ and ½ inch chunks. You should have around 2 cups (10 ounces or 284 grams) of prepped peaches.
- Assemble the bars. At this point, the shortbread crust should be ready. Place the crust on a wire rack, but keep the oven on. Use the parchment to lift the pie weights out of the pan and expose the crust. Spoon the peaches evenly over the crust—there’s no need to wait for the crust to cool! Just be careful since the pan will be hot. Remove the streusel from the refrigerator and sprinkle it evenly over the fruit, breaking up any large clumps with your hands.
- Bake the bars. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the fruit is fork-tender and the streusel is golden brown. Cool the bars on a wire rack for 20 minutes, or until the streusel topping feels firm to the touch.
- Serve and store. Run a butter knife or offset spatula along the edges of the pan and use the overhanging parchment as handles to lift the bars out of the pan and onto a cutting board. Slice the bars lengthwise. Then, hold the two long slices together and slice them into quarters crosswise to create 8 petite bars. The pie bars can be stored in a zip-top bag or airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days.
Notes
- The brown butter shortbread cookie crust requires 2 ½ Tablespoons of confectioners’ sugar. Unfortunately, a 1 ½-Tablespoon measure isn’t typically available with most measuring spoon sets. However, you can use a ½-teaspoon and 1-teaspoon measure to measure out the equivalent of 1 ½ Tablespoons. Specifically, 2 ½ Tablespoons equals 7 ½ teaspoons. I recommend using a digital scale instead, or investing in a 1 ½ Tablespoon measure on Amazon if you’re planning on baking more small batch recipes!
- No pie weights? No problem! Although you can buy ceramic pie weights online like I did, you can also use coins from your spare change jar, dried beans, or uncooked rice for the same results.
- The recipe instructs you to mold the shortbread dough into the cake pan by patting it in place with your hands. It’s much easier if you start with patting dough in the corners of the pan. Doing so holds the parchment paper in place and makes the task much easier!
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