Raspberry Crumb Bars

Lemon Polenta Cake is long gone and we needed something new to perk up our morning coffee. It's really de-licious, chewy inside and crumbly on top, a perfect combination.

This one is from my most favourite cooking site/cookbook Smitten Kitchen, You can find the original recipe here. 

Here is the original recipe:

For the crust and crumb:

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar(I used regular caster sugar)
1 1/4 cups rolled oats (I used rye oats)
3/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda (I think it's way too much and recommend no more than 3/4tbsp of baking powder only)
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch pieces
For the raspberry filling:
1/4 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar (or caster)
1 tablespoon grated lemon zest
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
250gr raspberries, fresh or frozen
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

Make the crust and crumb: Preheat the oven to 180°C. Butter the bottom and sides of a square baking pan. Put a long piece of parchment paper in the bottom of the pan. Butter the parchment.

Put the flour, brown sugar, oats, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon in a food processor. Pulse in short bursts until combined. Add the butter and pulse until loose crumbs form.(I used my fingers here).
Reserve 1 1/2 cup of the mixture and set aside. (Note: The book suggests you reserve one cup only. My gut told me that was too little, and I upped it. I wanted to make sure the top of the raspberries were mostly covered, at least for packing purposes, and was glad I had changed it.) 

Pour the rest of the mixture into the prepared pan. Bake until golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let the crust cool. Keep the oven on while you make the raspberry filling.

Make the raspberry filling: In a medium bowl, whisk the sugar, lemon zest, cinnamon and flour together. Add the raspberries, lemon juice and butter and use your hands to toss gently until the raspberries are evenly coated.
Spread the raspberry filling evenly on top of the cooled crust. Sprinkle the reserved crust mixture evenly on top of the filling.
Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, rotating the pan every 15 minutes, until the top is golden brown and the filling starts to bubble around the edges.
Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely, then cut into squares and serve. The bars can be stored in the refrigerator in a container for up to two days.

Source: Smitten Kitchen