Berry Pie Bars

There are two things in my life I consider to be my babies. One of them is my fluffy little bunny Patrick. And when I say little I actually mean quite large, this bad boy is ten pounds (he could easily take on a small dog). I wish I could say he was one of those rabbits that just ran freely around the house like a cat, but unfortunately that is not the case. We tested it out a few years ago, and ended up with a GIANT hole in the middle of our living room carpet and multiple bed spreads chewed to pieces. If it were up to my mom and me we totally would’ve worked out those kinks. But my Dad, being the animal lover he is (I say that dripping with sarcasm), sort of freaked out and Patrick is now doomed to his cage and occasional hour-long-run-arounds for the rest of his days. None the less I love my chubby bunny with all my heart. My other baby is my garden. It is my pride and joy. We have peppers, two different kinds of tomatoes, and my favorite, strawberries growing. We haven’t had anything ripe enough to pick yet, but I’ve had my fingers crossed and I’ve been praying I have the same green thumb my grandpa has – seriously the dude could bring a dead tree back to life. Ever since we decided to grow strawberries, I have been snagging every single strawberry recipe I see, but my little berries aren’t growing fast enough for me. And since it is summer (berry season yay :) ) the berries at the store are fabuloussss! So those will just have to do until my strawberries start to ripen and thrive like I know they will :). While I was at the store this weekend the blackberries looked uber juicy as well as the strawberries so those are the two I decided to use in these bars, but really any berry would work. Blueberries would be delicious, oh or raspberries! That is why I (cleverly) named them Berry Pie Bars because I want you to use whatever fruit your heart desires. Now, since these bars are loaded with berries and fresh lemon you could TOTALLY call them semi-sort of- healthy. Kind of. I mean yeah so there is a cup of sugar and half a stick of butter thrown in but its whateves cause the antioxidants rule that out right? And not that I did it this morning or anything, but these bars are super good for breakfast :). 

Berry Pie Bars

·         ½ cups granulated sugar

·         ½ tsp baking powder

·         1 ½ cup all-purpose flour

·         ½ cup cold unsalted butter

·         1 egg white

·         Pinch of salt

·         Zest and juice of one lemon

·         About 3 cups of blackberries and sliced strawberries

·         1/4 cup granulated sugar

·         2 T flour

Instructions

1.       Grease and line an 8 x 8” pan. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

2.       In a large bowl whisk together the sugar, flour, baking powder, salt, and lemon zest.

3.       Using a pastry cutter, incorporate the egg and cold butter into the flour mixture until it is crumbly.

4.       In another bowl combine lemon juice, flour, sugar, and berries.

5.       Take half the dough and spread into bottom of pan.

6.       Top with berries and then crumble the rest of the dough over the top.

7.       Bake for about 35-40 watching closely until top is golden brown.

8.       Let them cool completely before cutting and store them in the fridge.

  

 *adapted from witandvinegar.com*