Have you tried a fruit crunch? There’s an extra layer of topping that makes this Strawberry Rhubarb Crunch just a little more special than a fruit crisp.
Fresh fruits tossed together with citrus and cinnamon sugar, then baked in between layers of a brown sugar and oat crust, this is my favorite way to bake fruit desserts.
Rhubarb Crunch
Almost firm enough to cut into bars and yet just fruity enough to still resemble a crisp, a crunch is simply a fruit crisp with both a top and bottom crust layer.
Don’t be intimidated by the crust layers or the topping, no cutting in cold butter is required. Melted butter is poured into the topping and it forms perfect crumbs to top this dessert. This recipe gets bonus points for being naturally gluten-free too.
(Watch the video to see just how easy it is to make this Strawberry Rhubarb Crunch!)
Strawberry Rhubarb
I tried rhubarb for the first time at a friend’s house several years ago. (Thanks, Rachael!) I absolutely loved the rhubarb and strawberry combination that she served for dessert.
Remembering Rachael’s delicious dessert, I decided to adapt my favorite fruit crunch recipe to include some fresh rhubarb that I found at my local market this past weekend.
Tangy, sweet and just a tiny bit tart from the rhubarb. I love this dessert so much; I have now added rhubarb to my garden list for next spring.
I like to serve this crisp warm from the oven, scooped into bowls with our favorite homemade ice cream for an unforgettable dessert, but it’s also amazing sliced into bars the next day for breakfast. (Or for lunch, or let’s be honest, I’d happily eat this for dinner as well.)
Strawberry Rhubarb Recipes
Want a few more rhubarb dessert ideas? Rhubarb Crumb Bars are a light summer treat that you’re going to love having on hand. This Strawberry Rhubarb Pie recipe is a classic that you’ll want to save for strawberry season.
Rhubarb Cream Cheese Muffins are a breakfast and snacking favorite with kids and adults. Do you have a favorite rhubarb recipe? I’d love to hear about it if you do.
If you have an abundance of strawberries in the house, I highly recommend you try this Summer Berry Brulee. It is an unforgettable treat.
Check out all of the great berry recipes that we love, along with this awesome tip for how to hull strawberries with just a plastic straw.
Have you tried an herb sugar? I made this Sweet Basil Sugar with Fresh Strawberries a few years ago and it’s almost too good to be true. It’s a perfectly light and sweet treat that is pure summertime heaven.
Strawberry Rhubarb Crunch
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Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place the fruit in a mixing bowl. Add the white sugar, cinnamon, salt, and cornstarch. Stir to coat and add the orange juice. Stir again and set aside.
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In a separate mixing bowl, combine the remaining dry ingredients and then add the melted butter. Stir to combine. Press half of this mixture into a buttered 9×13 pan. Pour the fruit over the bottom crust and then sprinkle the rest of the dry mixture on top.
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Bake for 30-35 minutes, until the crust turns golden brown. Scoop into bowls warm from the oven or let cool completely and slice into servings.
Strawberry Rhubarb Crunch
Ingredients
- FRUIT FILLING INGREDIENTS:
- 2 cups chopped strawberries
- 2 cups thinly sliced and chopped fresh rhubarb frozen can be substituted if fresh is not available
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch or arrowroot
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 cup orange juice
- CRUST INGREDIENTS:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups old fashioned oats
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- 1 cup butter melted
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place the fruit in a mixing bowl. Add the white sugar, cinnamon, salt, and cornstarch. Stir to coat and add the orange juice. Stir again and set aside.
- In a separate mixing bowl, combine the remaining dry ingredients and then add the melted butter. Stir to combine. Press half of this mixture into a buttered 9x13 pan. Pour the fruit over the bottom crust and then sprinkle the rest of the dry mixture on top.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes, until the crust turns golden brown. Serve warm from the oven or let cool completely and slice into servings. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
{originally posted 6/15/12 – recipe notes and photos updated 7/28/19}
IdaBaker says
Strawberry Rhubarb is my all time favorite combination, so I'll have to add this to my list of must makes.
Thanks!!
Megan @ Cooking Whims says
I made strawberry rhubarb pie for the first time last week and fell head over heels in love with it — this sounds like yet another great way to use rhubarb! yum.
Jenn says
Oh wow, this looks incredible! I want a nice big slice with a scoop of homemade vanilla ice cream… is that asking too much???
Athena @ Lifes Abundant Adventures says
Strawberry Rhubarb is the greatest desert flavor EVER! My grandma makes pies that are amazing and every time her grandkids visit, she makes their favorite pies. She makes strawberry rhubarb for me. She grows her own strawberries and rhubarb, she is so wonderful. And with her leftover harvests, she makes strawberry rhubarb jam and calls it "Athena Jam" I love grandma!
Beth says
This looks incredible! All that fruit, and a brown sugar crunch topping – it can't be beat.
Sue/the view from great island says
***swoon***
The layering idea is great, gives it a little structure. These are my favorite desserts.
Sue/the view from great island says
900 followers on facebook!!!
Blond Duck says
ALL OVER THIS.
Marjie says
Oat crumbs top and bottom with fruit filling? What's not to love!
Vicki Bensinger says
This looks fantastic and I love the healthy ingredients. THis is my first time visiting your blog, it's beautiful and I really like the layout. Can you tell me which template this is on blogger? I've been wanting to revamp my blog a bit and this format looks perfect to me.
Mary says
Hi Vicki, I think it started out as Watermark. I changed it a lot initially, so I'm not sure. I checked in the existing template and it just says "custom." Sorry that I'm not more helpful. Thank you for the compliment!
Words Of Deliciousness says
I'm a big fan of rhubarb. This dessert sounds delicious. Strawberry and rhubarb is such a great combination.
Magnolia Verandah says
Oh yes! This is for me! Absolutely delish! Add a generous slurp of cream or custard and this is perfect.
Bears Fan says
Definetly going to try this, it looks amazing, I wish I could have a bite right NOW! Thanks for sharing!
Jed Gray (sportsglutton) says
Oh Mary. I wish I had looked in my Reader on Friday night, because this recipe would have been perfect. Instead I unfortunately made an adhoc strawberry rhubarb thing that really didn't work out. 🙁
Hope you're having a great weekend!
Anna @ hiddenponies says
My mom's rhubarb crumble also has a top and bottom layer and it is definitely the way to go with crumbles – so delicious! I can't believe you just tried rhubarb – but I can't wait to see what else you do with it, it's one of my favourite ingredients!
Anonymous says
hi…if gluten free which I need… what about the oats?
Mary says
It depends on your sensitivity to oats. Most people with a gluten intolerance can handle oats that are certified gluten free. It is my understand though, that some persons with an extreme sensitivity can not have oats at all.
Kelly says
I substituted gluten free flour for the all purpose, my flour says 1 to 1 substitution. Then I used bobs redmill gluten free oats. I also have a dairy allergy so I substituted coconut oil for the butter, I used 3/4 cup instead of the 1 cup suggested.
Barbara says
I made one of these last year, too. OMG – SOOOOOOOOOO very delicious. Good news – seems like rhubarb season lasts a little longer around here than it did in VA (longer spring, cooler summer)!!!!
Diana says
I am high allergy to oranges, orange juice, anything to do with oranges, any one know of a substitution that would work as well, I am not gluten free
Sheryl says
I have never put orange juice in mine so I would think just omit it. In fact I do not put the crumble on the bottom typically. 🙂
Barbara says
I am not familiar with xanthan gum. Can I leave this out or sub with something else?
Thanks
Mary says
This actually works fine without the xanthan. I’ve recently made it that way.
Patricia Carter says
This was what I craved before I had my oldest son July 1960 I got one piece went to hospital that night.
Tia iles says
My husband is gluten free and I often user he all purpose gluten free flour. For this recipe would I still need to use the tapioca and xanthan gum with this flour? Thank you
Mary says
If you’re using a GF flour blend, simply substitute that for the all-purpose flour in the recipe. Ignore the GF ingredients with the asterisk.
Sara says
This may sound silly, wanting to make the recipe that is not gluten free, it’s says to substitute 2 cups off flour with each item that has a * by it… I see 3…. So use 6 cups of flour?! Thank you!
Mary says
2 cups TOTAL. I hope that helps!
Diane saarela says
I would like to try this but it says arrowroot what is it
Mary says
Cornstarch or arrowroot will work for this recipe. Enjoy!
Julie says
This lookd great..I remember eating this in school way back in the day.
J. Moran says
The instructions call for adding arrowroot, but that isn’t in the list of ingredients. How much should I use?
Mary says
Cornstarch or arrowroot will work for this recipe. Thanks for catching that.
Florence Evans says
Strawberry Rhubarb Brown Sugar Crunch recipe
Instructions mention arrowroot, but it is not listed in the ingredients.
Instructions doesn’t mention cornstarch, but it is listed in the ingredients.
Florence
[email protected]
Mary says
Thanks, Florence. Cornstarch or arrowroot will work for this recipe. Thanks!
Patsy says
Looks awesome love to try !
Joanna Mitchell says
This was very good but stuck to my pan, the crust was very hard when cooled.
Carol Rutgers says
It’s so wonderful to find easy gluten free recipes!
Marilyn says
Love old fashioned recipes. I WAS raised on homemade desserts everyday and was never overweight. Its all the junk food that is so fattening. We had a big garden and froze our vegetables and canned our own fruit.
Angelica says
Could I use almond flour instead white flour ?
Mary says
Almond flour won’t work exactly the same, but it should still work for the layers in this recipe. Let me know how it turns out if you try it!
Linda gilbert says
Looks good gonna try it luv rhubarb desserts👍👍👍
Peggy Rogers says
Made this yesterday and found it toooooo sweet, so I would just cut out some of the sugar to half as much next time….I sprinkled sliced almonds on top too add some crunch…..
Cathy Venema says
Can you freeze this recipe and bake it later?
Mary says
I typically bake and then freeze, but it should work fine either way.
Sandra Mayes says
I grew up with a patch of rhubarb in our back yard. I remember Mum would stew the rhubarb with sugar and put it on our Weetbix (breakfast cereal). When we poured milk on it, the acid in the rhubarb would curdle the milk, lol, doesn’t make any difference to the taste, just looked funny. I also like to eat rhubarb raw, just dip the end in sugar, tastes great. Rhubarb goes really well with apples too. I’ve never tried it with strawberries before, sounds really good. I’ll have to try it. Btw that rhubarb patch is long gone. I googled the place where I grew up and it doesn’t exist anymore 😦
Joan M. Reinke says
This recipe calls for one cup of flour, and yet you tell someone who asked to use 2 cups of flour instead of your GF ingredients. We used one cup of flour as the original recipe indicated. This turned out terrible. The flavor was fine, but it was impossible to get out of the pan, It was soggy and mushy. I am so thankful I did not make this for guests.
Mary says
oh, Joan! I am so sorry for your hassle. That is my fault and I have no idea how it happened. My original recipe was written with the gluten-free ingredients in the body of the recipe card and the 2 cups all-purpose flour substitution at the bottom. I edited the post and reversed the placement a little while ago because I was getting a lot of questions about the traditional recipe vs the gluten free. And somehow I messed it up and only wrote 1 cup in the recipe card. Again, I am very sorry for that recipe failure. I hate it so much when recipes don’t work out and this time it was entirely my fault.
Laureen says
Can I substitute quick oats for the old fashioned oats?
Mary says
The texture will be a little different, but it should work fine.
Wasted Time says
Sure wish you would have distinguished between sugar and brown sugar when giving mixing directions. Ended up mixing both sugars in the fruit mix, I’m going to assume, based on how terrible the topping came out, that the brown sugar was supposed to be mixed in with the flour and oats. Sadly you just say to mix remaining ingredients.
Shirley says
How many will thus serve?
Lin says
I just love rhubarb crisps
Diane says
I plan to use frozen rhubarb and frozen strawberries because I have on hand. Do I need to add more dry ingredients or less liquid, I.e. Omit orange juice to compensate for possible extra moisture?
Mary says
It should be fine with frozen fruit. I don’t think the orange juice will make it too wet.
Tina Hiebert says
Hello I To made my first strawberry/rhubarb
Pie and its delicious
Now I am going to make this strawberry/
Rhubarb crisp sounds easy to make and delicious
Went to the garden centre three days in a row and bought all there rhubarb
Now I have some ready for the winter too
Thank you for sharing
Lisa mitch says
I made this 2 weeks ago and it was very good
Carol Weisz says
When a recipe calls for “white” sugar does it mean regular sugar or powdered sugar?
Mary says
This recipe calls for regular white granulated sugar. Powdered sugar is typically referred to as powdered or confectioners sugar. I hope that helps!
Elaine Freimuth says
I will try this looks awesome! Thank you for sharing! Hugs Elaine
Rosemary says
Going to give this a try, we are growing rhubarbin our yard.
Dee says
This is an awesome recipe, I would definitely make it again….thanks for sharing
Irene Gage says
Delicious
Kathy says
Looks good going to try it
Joyce says
I am always looking for fruit breads, cakes , and I have 2 bags of frozen rhubarb in my freezer and will try this recipe .
Catherine Hall says
Looks yummy I’ll make it for a friend of mine 🤓💥😜
Maureen says
Have never had rhubarb. Will have to give it a try. Along with the strawberries, it should be a great dissert .
Sonny Milich says
Oh wow my good friend just brought me some rubard from her garden!! I have never tried this fruit before but your recipe looks so simple I am going to bake this for my hubby and good friend !! She really lives rhubarb!! Thank you very much for your recipe !!
Renee Schouten says
Hi,
how much crumble does the recipe make?
Thanks!
Renee
donna Matthews says
I was interested in the gluten free part of this recipe but doesn’t old fashion oats have gluten ?
Mary says
Oats are naturally gluten free. However, oats may often be processed in a facility that also processes wheat. If you are celiac or highly sensitive, you’ll want to make sure your oats are certified gluten free.
Melissa Griffiths says
Rhubarb everything is my favorite!
Tricia @ Saving room for dessert says
Wow – this looks fantastic! Love the summer flavors of rhubarb and strawberry. I bet your boys gobbled this up! Thanks for the link love 🙂
Christina says
YUUUUUUUMMMMMM!!!!! GAH, I want to face plant into that crunch! Great job!
Larry says
I love the pie version and with this crunchy topping, I believe I’d like it even more.
Jason says
Ice Cream in Strawberry flavors best flavors.Strawberry fruits adjust many dishes like some make ice cream, chat, powder, slash, crunch etc.The crunch of strawberry is a very delicious sweet dish.
Joanne Matthees says
Here is a recipe that might be what you need.
Strawberry, rhubarb crunch.
Debbie Keel says
I remember my Grandma going out to e garden to get fresh rhubarb and strawberries and make a pie, how I miss her so.
Laura Young says
I made this today. It is wonderful!
Suzanne says
Hi Mary
This recipe looks amazing. I can’t wait to try it. I do have a question…can I substitute a jar of blackberry or cherry pie filling for the rhubarb/strawberry mixture – do I need to change anything? I have a pie filling with Door County WI cherries and I think that would also be delicious here. i just wasn’t sure if I needed to adjust anything. Thank you in advance!
Eve says
Made this recipe and it is delicious ..it’s now in my favourite recipe stash.
Anna says
i made this desert . it was amazing , very tasty . did not last long , i had this with yogurt. it was also very good less calories than ice cream. WE are lactose free , me and my son , so had to have lactose free yogurt. I am making that again using rhubarb from my garden , fresh. substituting lemon juice for orange juice.
I have to put parchment paper in the glass baking dish to make it better for serving and clean up of the pan. Thank you for sharing this recipe with me and my family.
Barb says
My sister-in-law made this last week. It was so good I could not get enough of it. I have had a lot of strawberry rhubarb crisp but this one is by far the best . I think it has to do with the crust on the bottom it just adds an extra crunch.
Jerri says
Just made this tonite..Sooooo good! This will be in my dessert rotation for sure! I substituted gluten free all purpose flour. It turned out perfect!!!
Janet says
I just made this and it is absolutely delicious! A friend gave me some rhubarb and I already had the rest of the ingredients on hand. Fantastic!
Karen Reddy says
Yum! Going to make this this weekend. Thanks for the recipe
Carol says
Wow, what a delicious sounding recipe. I bet it would be great with apples and raspberries, too, my other favourite fruit combination. I’ll have to try it both ways. In any case, it’s easier than our!
Felicia says
Could this recipe be made ahead of time and put in the freezer and then baked at a later date?
Mary says
I don’t recall whether I’ve frozen this exact recipe, but I’ve frozen many crisps and cobblers without any issues at all. Happy baking!
Tom Ricotta says
This was my first time baking with Rhubarb. It came out perfect! I had a piece while it was hot Yum! Then refrigerate it overnight and cubed it up. That was awesome as well. It was a major hit.
Karen Harris Tully says
This is delicious! I’ve never done much with rhubarb, but this great.
I actually used a gf flour blend, and halved the crust crumb recipe to make it in a 8×8 pan with the full amount of fruit. It was awesome. Will make again ❤
I’m an author of YA Sci-fi and I’d love to post this on my website, with full credit and links, as my main character Sunny’s favorite summer dessert. It looks below like this is ok, but if not, please let me know. Cheers!
Mary says
You’re welcome to link to the recipe from your site, Karen. I’m so glad you like it!
Ron Brummett says
My wife said, we only need to make a 9×9 pan. So, being the “engineer” I wanted to be, I calculated the square inches of 9X13 and 9X9. I then determined that this is about a 33% decrease in ingredients. However, I had cut 2 cups of our rhubarb; she had purchased 4 cups of strawberries. NO way was I going to cut the rhubarb, So, I kept the fruit the same, cut the crunchy by 33%. WOW! Simply, WOW!! Our guests loved it. My wife wants another one this week. Our rhubarb is withering from the heat here in CO. 🙂
Jen says
You don’t have to wait for spring. You can set out rhubarb roots early in the fall. Also I wouldn’t use a full cup of sugar, too much for me! I use3 cups of each and less sugar than that Also seems like a bit too much topping. I use 3/4 cup each of flour and oatmeal,, 1/4 cups each of brown sugar and butter. You could substitute some of the sugar with stevia. A little healthier.
Rose says
Can I make this recipe in a few days in advance or freeze it?
Mary says
That should work fine.
Lori Shaneyfelt says
Ive been making this every spring/ summer, one of my families favorite desserts!! I’ll be making it for Easter next week, cant wait!!
Mary says
I’m so happy you enjoy this recipe!
Pauline Rusinich says
I didn’t have strawberries SO I just did rhubarb.. I used 4 cups rhubarb. Excellent I like the double crust.. Next time I will make extra for extra topping.. As I really like extra on top! I usually make double topping for crisps.. Personal preference.
Mary Younkin says
I bet this was delicious with just the rhubarb, Pauline!
Joyce Schiefelbein says
Absolutely love this recipe, second time making it in a week! Husband has a serious sweet tooth, lol. Definitely 5 stars on this one.
Mary Younkin says
I’m so happy to hear that you’re enjoying this recipe, Joyce! I love this particular dessert.
Kelly Bartlett says
Delicious recipe! Thank you so much for sharing this. I did two small tweaks.
One because I did not have any orange juice, and
Two because I prefer to use Monk fruit sugar as it is lower on the glycemic index and there is also the brown sugar in this recipe.
I find this to be the easiest and most pleasant tasting fruit crisp I have ever had! Now I will use up more or the multiple patches of Rhubarb I have!♡
Kelly Bartlett says
I forgot to say that I used two teaspoons of organic orange peel instead of the orange juice.
Mary Younkin says
I’m glad you liked it, Kelly!
Penni says
Kelly did you use the same amount of the monk fruit sugar?
Mary Younkin says
I’m so happy you are enjoying it, Kelly!
Karen says
Not our favourite. Too much flour/oats. Was also a bit dry
Mary Younkin says
Sorry to hear it wasn’t your thing, Karen.
Helene DeKezel says
Thank you for this recipe….it’s amazing…..our family likes lots of fruit so I omitted the bottom layer & was able to make 2 pans ….love the topping & I was able to freeze one pan for later use….Thanks again….Delicious
Mary Younkin says
I’m so happy that you like it, Helene!
Sheran Jeffery says
Looks wonderful & I love both fruits.
Mary Younkin says
I hope you love the recipe, Sheran!
Jennifer Siford says
Was wondering on I strawberry rubardcrunch can I use frozen strawberry my mom froze up
Mary Younkin says
That will work nicely, Jennifer.
Jennifer Siford says
Can it be made ahead of time the strawberry rhubarb crunch
SD says
Very good, very easy!
Mary Younkin says
I’m glad you like it!
Linda says
When served while warm, the crust is like candy. Leftovers however, were not good cold
Mary Younkin says
I’m glad you liked it, Linda. I’d recommend warming up the leftovers.