Peach Crumble Bars

Day TWO for my official peach week here on Baking with Blondie is all about those sweet crumbly little desserts we all can't get enough of: gooey fruit bars. This time, however, we've loaded them with peaches! I know you're surprised. 

Unfortunately, this recipe calls for the peaches to be peeled. 

I was kind of offended. 

Appalled, really. 

I mean, the angry riots nearly broke out from my kitchen. 

Peach skins are amazing. I LOVE using them in recipes - that's where a lot of the signature peach flavor comes from, for crying-out-loud. Why on earth would I ever ever ever leave it out? (Okay, I'm a total hypocrite. My cinnamon peach ice cream does call for peeled peaches, but I've made it with & without... and with was much better). So, as you may have guessed, I left those peach skins right on the little peachy darlings, and threw them right into the crumble. (Okay, I'm not really that mad...if you peel your peaches I will (still) always love you. Whitney Houston style, even).

Isn't that shade of darker orange mixed in with the pinkish reds gorgeous? It's like a sunset. No, really. If you want to paint a gosh-darned sunset, stare at a peach for a half and hour, and you should be good color-wise. Where were we? Oh, yes. Peach crumb bars. 

These little guys have the best texture on the planet. The bottom is sustainable (not at all mushy like you might expect from these bars sometimes). The center is cobbler-heaven, and the top is where all the money is. Crumbly, crunchy, with a light layer of cinnamon and sugar. We made a batch of these Sunday morning, and had a few of them that evening. Today, I took the rest of the pan to a little harvest gathering at my Mom's house and the pan was licked clean within 15 minutes. 

xo, 

blondie

Peach Crumble Bars
makes 12-14 servings in a 9x13 pan

ingredients:

peach filling:
5 C diced peaches
2 T lemon juice
1/2 C all-purpose flour
1 t cornstarch
1 C granulated sugar
1/4 t salt
1/2 t ground cinnamon
1/4 t ground nutmeg

dough:
3 C all-purpose flour
1 C granulated sugar
1 t baking powder
1/4 t salt
1/4 t cinnamon
1 C cold unsalted butter, cubed
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 t vanilla extract

cinnamon and sugar for sprinkling

method:
1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Spray a 9x13-inch baking pan with cooking spray and set aside.
2. To make peach filling: combine diced peaches in a large bowl with lemon juice and mix gently.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, cornstarch, sugar, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg together. Pour over the peaches and carefully fold together to combine.
4. To make the dough: in a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Throw them into a mixer with a paddle attachment with cubed cold butter. Mix together until a loose powder forms (might need your mixer cover so it doesn't fly everywhere... just sayin'). Add vanilla and egg and mix until crumbles form. Press half the dough into the prepared pan.
5. Spread the peach mixture evenly over the bottom crust, then crumble the remaining dough over the peach layer. Sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar.
6. Bake for 45 minutes, or until the top is golden (mine needed about 4 minutes under the high broiler at the end to seal the deal). Cool completely on a wire rack, then cut into squares to serve.

*serve with vanilla bean ice cream if desired, or as is.

recipe source: two peas and their pod & brown eyed baker