Mustard Free Pear Crumble Bars with Cinnamon and Cardamom
Warm spiced pears tucked between a buttery oat crust and a golden crumble topping — these bars are the kind of thing that makes your kitchen smell like a proper autumn afternoon. The filling is cooked down on the stovetop with coconut sugar, Ceylon cinnamon, and cardamom until it turns glossy and jam-like, so every bite is soft, fragrant, and deeply satisfying. Tapioca starch does the thickening work here, keeping the filling set without any gummy texture or starchy aftertaste. For anyone navigating a mustard-free lifestyle, baked goods can still trip you up when packaged mixes or flavoring blends sneak in unexpected ingredients — this recipe uses straightforward pantry staples with nothing hidden in the mix. Rice flour and rolled oats form the base of both the crust and the crumble, giving the bars a slightly nutty, hearty texture that holds together beautifully once cooled. A drizzle of maple syrup binds the crumble just enough to create those satisfying clumpy bits on top that bake up crisp and golden. Slice them into nine squares and they work just as well as a casual dessert as they do alongside your morning coffee.
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Learn more →Ingredients
9 servings
For the crust and crumble
- 1 ½ cups rolled oats
- ¾ cup rice flour
- ⅓ cup coconut sugar
- ½ tsp ground ceylon cinnamon
- ¼ tsp ground cardamom
- ¼ tsp salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter, cold and cut into small cubes
- 2 tbsp pure maple syrup
For the pear filling
- 4 medium ripe pears (about 1 ½ lbs), peeled, cored, and cut into ½-inch dice
- 3 tbsp coconut sugar
- 1 tsp ground ceylon cinnamon
- ¼ tsp ground cardamom
- 1 tbsp tapioca starch
- 1 tbsp unsalted butter
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, stir together the rolled oats, rice flour, coconut sugar, Ceylon cinnamon, cardamom, and 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. Drizzle in the maple syrup and toss with a fork until the mixture just holds together when pressed.
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