Citrus Free Honey-Pear Crumble Bars
Warm, golden, and fragrant with honey and nutmeg, these crumble bars are the kind of cozy bake that makes the whole kitchen smell incredible. Ripe pears are gently cooked down with honey, a touch of apple cider vinegar, and tapioca starch until they reach a glossy, jam-like consistency that settles perfectly between a buttery oat crust and a craggy crumble topping. The double-duty crumble base — made with rolled oats, rice flour, and tapioca starch — keeps things simple while delivering that satisfying snap-and-chew texture in every bite. For anyone navigating citrus-free eating, fruit desserts can be tricky since lemon juice shows up constantly as a brightening agent, but the apple cider vinegar here does that same balancing work without any citrus in sight. The result is a filling that tastes bright and complex, not flat or overly sweet. Cut into nine generous bars, they hold together beautifully once fully cooled and are just as good the next day, making them an easy option for meal-prepped snacks or a casual dessert spread.
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Learn more →Ingredients
9 servings
For the crust and crumble
- 1 ½ cups rolled oats
- ¾ cup rice flour
- ¼ cup tapioca starch
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ tsp fine sea salt
- ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cold and cut into ½-inch cubes
For the pear filling
- 3 medium ripe pears (about 1 ½ lb), peeled, cored, and cut into ½-inch dice
- 3 tbsp honey
- 1 tbsp tapioca starch
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
Instructions
- 1
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Line a 9×9-inch baking pan with parchment paper, leaving a 2-inch overhang on two opposite sides to use as handles for lifting the bars out later.
- 2
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the rolled oats, rice flour, tapioca starch (the crust-and-crumble portion), granulated sugar, and fine sea salt until evenly combined. Scatter the cold butter cubes over the dry mixture and work them in with a pastry cutter or your fingertips until the mixture resembles coarse, clumpy crumbs with some pea-sized pieces of butter remaining — do not work it until smooth.
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