Love rhubarb crumble bars? These easy old fashioned 5-ingredient oatmeal rhubarb bars are the fastest, tastiest rhubarb bars I've ever made. Use fresh rhubarb or pull out your frozen rhubarb for a family favorite dessert that has that perfect balance of sweet, tart, soft and crisp.
Why I love these bars
Using only 5 pantry staple ingredients makes this one of my favorite rhubarb desserts because it's so fast and simple. This oatmeal rhubarb bar recipe calls for melted butter so there's no need for a pastry blender. With a baked crust, tart rhubarb filling and a streusel topping made from the remaining crumble mixture, it all bakes together in 3 distinct layers. It's a great recipe that comes together in just minutes.
Old fashioned rhubarb bars are great topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream while still warm from the oven but once cool, they pack well for school lunches or a potluck dessert, too. (Got strawberries AND rhubarb? Try this strawberry rhubarb shortcake and for another healthy lunchbox treat, banana rhubarb muffins are great.)
Growing Rhubarb
I love rhubarb and when rhubarb season arrives, you can bet I'm enjoying ALL the delicious sweet and savory rhubarb recipes. I love to let my daughter have a small bowl of sugar to take in the garden and snack on fresh rhubarb dipped into the sugar just like my mom did for me when I was young. Seeing her enjoying anything fresh out of the garden makes me smile.
One rhubarb plant can produce plenty of rhubarb and I have 4 in my rhubarb patch. Enough for lots of fresh desserts and plenty to chop and freeze for baking throughout the year. (Rhubarb stores incredibly well in the freezer. Chop it into ½ inch pieces and store it in zip top bags for use throughout the year.)
Ingredients
The great thing about these bars is that they only take 5 to 6 ingredients and you'll have this easy spring dessert baked up in no time! Easy, yummy rhubarb bars are great if you need to bake up dessert for unexpected guests.
- Oatmeal - You can use old-fashioned oats or quick oats for this recipe since they are used as a crisp topping and a shortbread crust style.
- Rhubarb - Chopped fresh rhubarb or frozen pieces will work equally well.
- Butter - Salted or unsalted butter both work fine. I've used salted here but if you use unsalted butter, add a quarter teaspoon of salt to the flour, sugar and oats and stir in.
Substitutions + Variations
There are a few good variations or substitutions you can make to these old-fashioned rhubarb bars if you want or need to.
- Sugar - I call for brown sugar in this recipe for it's yummy, caramel-like flavor but if you don't have any, you can sub demerara sugar, white sugar or coconut sugar. Use an equal amount of whichever sugar you choose.
- Fruit - Make these with half rhubarb and half other fruit. Halved fresh strawberries or sliced apples work great. Add 1 teaspoon of lemon juice to the fruit mixture and toss in a large bowl before spreading over the bottom crust.
Step By Step Instructions
These oatmeal rhubarb bars use the same mixture for the pressed, shortbread-style crust and the crumble topping. A great time saver.
Step 1. Preheat your oven to 350'F and line an 8 inch square pan with parchment paper. In a medium bowl, blend flour, oats, sugar and salt (if you have unsalted butter), together.
Step 2. Pour in the melted butter.
Step 3. Stir until well combined.
Step 4. Press ⅔'s of the oat flour and sugar mixture into the bottom of the pan.
Step 5. Add chopped rhubarb and arrange evenly over the bottom crust. Sprinkle remaining oat crumble over the top of the bars.
Step 6. Place pan into the preheated oven and bake 30 minutes until golden brown.
Storing
Cover these rhubarb crumb bars with plastic wrap or store in an airtight container at room temperature. Enjoy them as is or warm them briefly in the oven and top with a scoop of ice cream for a perfect dessert.
Pin It For Later
More delicious rhubarb recipes
If you're a rhubarb lover, these are for you!
- 50+ Best Sweet Tart Strawberry Rhubarb Recipes Ever!
- Best (Easy) Vegan Rhubarb Crumble Recipe With Oats
- Easy And Healthy Banana Rhubarb Muffins
- Rhubarb Snack Cake with Yogurt and Olive Oil
If you have any questions or comments, you can find me on Instagram, Pinterest and Facebook. I try to answer any recipe related questions quickly as I know you might be in the middle of making it.
Also check out my FREE PRINTABLE meal planner to make menu planning and grocery shopping a breeze and my shopping guide. And if you like this recipe, I would love it if you give it a star rating in the recipe card.
Cheers and happy cooking, Friends! Sabrina
📖 Recipe
Easy Old Fashioned 5-Ingredient Oatmeal Rhubarb Bars
Print Pin RateIngredients
- 1 cup oatmeal rolled oats or quick oats
- ¾ cup all purpose flour
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 7 tablespoons salted butter melted
- 2 cups rhubarb sliced in ½ inch pieces
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350º
- In a mixing bowl, combine oats, flour, and brown sugar.
- Pour in melted butter and stir until evenly distributed, and crumbly.
- Press ⅔ of oat and flour mixture into an 8x8 inch baking pan.
- Spread rhubarb evenly over the top and then sprinkle last ⅓ of oat crumble over the top.
- Bake in the center of the oven for about 30 minutes, or until the top begins to brown, and the rhubarb is cooked through.
- Let cool at least 15 minutes before serving. Serve warm or cold
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