Blueberry Crumble Bars

So far good reviews all around for these guys from the work crowd today! I got the recipe from one of my favorite place, Smitten Kitchen. Another really nice, straightforward recipe. I love that. I very seriously considered adding one more layer, a cream cheese layer in between the bottom crust and the blueberries. I think it would have added a little bit of fun to these. However, they are awesome just this way too. Start with the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and lemon zest in a bowl. Cut in the butter in pieces until just crumbly. Then add the egg and cut that in until just moistened. I used a pastry blender. It's okay to have some really chunky pieces and some flour that isn't quite incorporated. Having the inconsistent sizes makes that really nice sandy texture that you are going for here.
Then measure about 4 cups of fresh blueberries, picking over for stems. I love my big 4 cup measuring cup for fruit pies and tarts. It always comes in handy.
Spread half of the flour mixture into the prepared pan (I just used parchment paper, my favorite). Press this down into a thin crust.

In a separate bowl mix the cornstarch, sugar, and lemon juice. Stir to combine. Then fold in the blueberries. Spread this mixture over the crust.
Top with the remaining flour mixture. I picked up handfuls and pressed them together before crumbling over the top. If your home is very hot, you might want to put the remaining half of the flour mix back in the fridge while you do the berries. This keeps the butter from melting into the other ingredients.
Bake until brown on top. This smells amazing while it is baking.
Easier to cut once cooled in the fridge. I used a pizza wheel to cut these.
Enjoy!! This makes a lot to share with your friends, so that is always encouraged. You could probably also use frozen blueberries if you can't find fresh. I would just leave them frozen until you incorporate them into the sugar, lemon and cornstarch mixture. They will bake just the same, I would think. I will get back to you on the cream cheese layer. It would have to be pretty spreadable- probably similar to the middle layer of the cheesecake recipe that I posted a while back.

On deck- Red Velvet Cupcakes... as per request... we'll see what I can come up with for these!! Happy Friday and Welcome Weekend! Hope yours is fantastic!