Blueberry Pie Bars

Blueberry Pie Bars — These pie bars are one of my all-time favorite frozen blueberry recipes! They have the flavors you love in a blueberry pie, but you don’t have to mess around with homemade pie crust. If desired, you can easily make these with fresh blueberries instead of frozen! 

Addicting Blueberry Pie Bars

Blueberry pie is such a classic, but I’m not much of a pie-maker. I’m indifferent about pie crust and making a pie just to eat filling sounds like way too much work.

With these blueberry pie bars, there’s no crust to roll out, no mixer or rolling pin needed, and there’s an abundance of sweet blueberry filling. Now we’re talking! The pie bars have a soft yet crisp, buttery, shortbread-style crust. The crust mixture does double duty as the crumble topping. Love it when that happens so there’s one less step and one less bowl to wash.

There’s a creamy filling that tops the crust, which gives the bars a soft yet dense texture. Blueberries top the filling layer and they soften and release their juices while baking. All those juicy berries help to create extremely moist bars.

The crumbly bits on top of the bars add welcome texture and dimension to the soft filling and juicy berries. I love streusel or crumble toppings and will take crumble topping over pie crust any day. The blueberry bars are super soft and tender in the interior while the crust is firmer. The contrast of soft and firm makes you want to keep on taking bite after bite of these blue beauties.

Between the firm crust, the soft filling, the juicy blueberries, and the sandy crumbles, the bars have so many wonderful textures and flavors in every thick bite. They taste fancy enough to serve at a special event, luncheon, or brunch, yet are so homey and comforting. I’ll take a pie bar over pie any day.

What’s in These Blueberry Pie Bars? 

For this easy blueberry recipe, you’ll need: 

• Unsalted butter
• Granulated sugar
• Light brown sugar
• All-purpose flour
• Salt
• Egg
• Greek yogurt
• Vanilla extract
• Blueberries
• Lemon juice
• Cornstarch

How to Make Blueberry Pie Bars

You’ll first need to make the dough for the crust and streusel topping. Set 3/4 cup of the mixture aside (that’s your topping), and press the rest of the dough into the bottom of an 8-inch square baking pan. Pack the dough down so there are no gaps. 

Next, make the creamy filling and pour it over the crust. Use a spatula or the back of a spoon to spread the filling out evenly. 

Lastly, toss together the blueberry filling and sprinkle evenly over the filling. Crumble the streusel topping over the blueberries, then bake the pie bars until the edges are bubbling vigorously. The crumble topping should be pale golden in color. 

Should I Use Fresh or Frozen Blueberries? 

I used frozen blueberries because they’re cheaper, readily available year-round, and went straight from freezer to mixing bowl. I always bake with frozen. If you have fresh, they’d be lovely and you’ll need to reduce the baking time.

Can I Use Other Berries in This Recipe? 

Most likely, yes! I’ve had readers report success using frozen mixed berry blends in this recipe. Just remember that your bake time will vary depending on whether you use frozen or fresh berries, no matter what type you use!

Tips for Making Blueberry Pie Bars

When baking these blueberry pie bars, watch your dessert, not the clock, to determine doneness. The middle of the pie bars should just be starting to bubble up, while the edges should be bubbling a lot. The crumble topping won’t be a deep golden brown, but rather a pale golden color. 

You’ll need to let these pie bars cool completely before slicing them (they can cool on your countertop, no need to store in the fridge). If you try to slice these before they’re cooled completely, they’ll fall apart and will make a huge mess. 

If desired, you can freeze these bars once they’ve cooled on your countertop. They’ll keep in the freezer for up to 6 months. When you’re ready to eat the frozen bars, just place them on the counter to thaw. 

More Blueberry Desserts: 

• Crustless Blueberry Pie — a FAST, crustless, no-mixer dessert that’s perfect for summer entertaining, picnics, or potlucks!! Somewhere in between pie, cake, and blondies is what you get with this FABULOUS blueberry dessert recipe!
• Blueberry Bars with Crumble Topping — These bars are buttery and packed with blueberry flavor! They take just 10 minutes of prep and then go straight into the oven. So easy to make, and a crowd pleaser every time!
• Blueberry Crisp — This fruit crisp is delicious as is, but you could also serve it with a dollop of whipped cream or a scoop of ice cream.
• Blueberry Streusel Coffee Cake – An EASY, no-mixer cake studded with juicy blueberries and topped with big buttery streusel nuggets that are just SO GOOD!! Not overly sweet and PERFECT with a cup of coffee for breakfast, brunch, or a snack!
• Blueberry Lemon Bundt Cake — The cake is packed with sweet, juicy blueberries and while there’s lemon in the batter, it’s the lemon glaze that really brings out the tartly-sweet lemon flavor that complements the blueberries so well!

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Blueberry Pie Bars

These blueberry pie bars are one of my all-time favorite frozen blueberry recipes! They're super moist and the streusel topping is irresistible!

Yield: 9 servings

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 1 hour

Cooling Time 2 hours

Total Time 3 hours 15 minutes

Ingredients

Crust and Crumble Topping

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• pinch salt, optional and to taste

Filling

• 1 large egg
• heaping 1/2 cup plain or vanilla Greek yogurt; or sour cream (lite is okay)
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

Blueberry Layer

• 12 ounces (2 cups) blueberries (fresh or frozen; I used frozen and didn’t thaw)
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar (or 1/2 cup if berries are sour)
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Line an 8-inch square pan with aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray; set aside. Lining the pan will really help with cleanup and is recommended.

Make the Crust and Crumble Topping

1. In a large, microwave-safe bowl melt the butter, about 1 minute on high power.
2. Add the sugars and whisk to combine.
3. And the flour, optional salt, and stir to combine. Mixture will be very dry and sandy with some larger, well-formed crumble pieces.
4. Set a heaping 3/4 cup crumble mixture aside.
5. Transfer remaining mixture to prepared pan, and using a spatula or your fingers, hard-pack the mixture to create an even, smooth, flat crust; set aside.

Make the Filling

1. In a medium bowl, add the egg, Greek yogurt, sugar, vanilla, and whisk to combine.
2. Add the flour and whisk to combine.
3. Evenly pour filling over the crust and jiggle pan to help distribute it or smooth it with a spatula; set aside.

Make the Blueberry Layer

1. In a separate medium mixing bowl, add all filling ingredients and toss to combine. If sugar hasn’t dissolved fully or still has crystals, that’s okay because it liquifies while baking.
2. Evenly distribute blueberry mixture over the filling.
3. Evenly sprinkle with the reserved heaping 3/4 cup crust mixture. Before sprinkling, I squeeze the mixture in my palm to encourage bigger crumble pieces to form.

Bake the Bars

1. Bake for about 60 minutes, or until edges are bubbling quite vigorously and there’s some bubbling in the center. Crumble topping should appear set and very pale golden.*
2. Place pan on a wire rack and allow bars to cool for at least 1 to 2 hours (overnight is even better) before slicing and serving. If you try to slice bars before they’ve cooled completely, they’ll be extremely messy and could fall apart. Bars will keep airtight at room temperature for up to 1 week, in the fridge for up to 10 days (they’re good slightly chilled if you like chilled pie), or in the freezer for up to 6 months.

Notes

*Note: I used frozen berries without thawing and the pan was very cold going into the oven. If using fresh berries, baking time will be reduced, but I’m not sure by how much, I’d guess at least 10-15 minutes, possibly less. Watch your bars, not the clock, when evaluating doneness.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

9

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 340 Total Fat: 11g Saturated Fat: 7g Trans Fat: 0g Unsaturated Fat: 4g Cholesterol: 49mg Sodium: 32mg Carbohydrates: 56g Fiber: 2g Sugar: 36g Protein: 5g

Even More Frozen Blueberry Recipes: 

The BEST Blueberry Muffins — These muffins are fluffy and moist thanks to the addition of sour cream in the batter. Not to mention they’re bursting with fresh blueberry flavor.

Brown Sugar Blueberry Banana Bread — Super moist blueberry banana bread made with Greek yogurt and dark brown sugar. Smear some homemade blueberry butter onto a slice of this blueberry brown sugar banana bread and prepare to fall in love! 

Lightened Up Blueberry Lemon Pound Cake — Since most of us can’t afford to eat a pound of butter and a pound of sugar, this is the next best thing. This is butter-less pound cake and made using I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter!® Spread, the Light version.

Blueberry Muffin & Buttermilk Pancakes Cake — This fast and easy cake tastes like a big buttermilk pancake that ran into a blueberry muffin on the way to the oven.