Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp
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Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp is a dessert that really highlights the best fruits of spring and summer. It's sweet, tart, juicy, and buttery. Fresh strawberries and rhubarb bake together until they are bubbling and jammy, then a golden brown crumb topping with oats, cinnamon, and brown sugar goes on top.
This dessert is easy to make and tastes great served warm with vanilla ice cream, whipped cream, or a sprinkle of powdered sugar.
Table of Contents
- Here's Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Ingredients You'll Need
- In Photos: How To Make Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp
- Make Ahead Friendly Dessert
- More Strawberry Recipes
It's rhubarb season, and that means we're making strawberry rhubarb crisp! Every year around this time, rhubarb comes into season. I always like to celebrate with some kind of strawberry-rhubarb recipe.
Sometimes it's strawberry rhubarb pie, or a strawberry rhubarb shandy, or even strawberry rhubarb bars.
This year, I'm sharing the easiest, most effortless dish I can think of with this simple Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp!
I love making crisps because they're so easy! You don't have to fuss around with rolling out dough or anything like that, and they showcase seasonal fruit in the most delicious way.
Plus, they feed a crowd and can be served warm, at room temperature, or cold.
This one features strawberries and rhubarb, which are a match made in heaven. Rhubarb is tart like a sour candy, but when sweetened with sugar and combined with strawberries, the result is truly magical. The two components complement each other in the most incredible way! The result is sweet & summery, fruity and floral, and you just won't believe how insanely good it tastes!
The topping has brown sugar, oats, and just a hint of cinnamon. It's like an oatmeal cookie!
Together, the soft filling and crunchy topping work so well together. The contrast of flavors and textures will really wow you!
Here's Why You'll Love This Recipe
- This strawberry rhubarb crisp is full of fresh, bright fruit flavor.
- The filling is sweet but still has the tangy taste of rhubarb, so it never gets too sugary. The topping turns out crisp and buttery, with oats adding a bit of texture.
- It's also very easy to make. You don't need to roll out a pie crust, chill anything, or use special equipment. Just mix the fruit filling, add the topping, and bake.
- You can also make this dessert ahead of time. Serve it warm, at room temperature, or reheat it the next day.
Ingredients You'll Need
The recipe card at the bottom of the post contains the full list with all of the amounts. Refer to that when you're cooking.
- Strawberries: I used fresh for the crisp that's pictured here, but frozen will work well too! You might just want to thaw and drain the frozen berries first. You'll need two 16-ounce containers. This recipe is very generous!
- Rhubarb: Stalks only! The leaves are poisonous. Rhubarb is actually a vegetable! But the color and flavor make it seem more like a fruit. I find fresh rhubarb stalks in my grocery store's produce department every year in late spring/early summer (I'm in the northeast US). Frozen rhubarb works fine too, if you can find it!
- Sugar: Regular white sugar is fine, or sub for another type of sweetener if you like. As long as it swaps 1:1 for granulated sugar, it should work just fine. I know 2 cups may sound like a lot, but this is a big dish that can serve many people. And the fruit can be very tart, so you need it to mellow it out. It will also help to gel up the juices and make the filling nice and thick.
- Cornstarch: Cornstarch is a colorless, flavorless, and odorless thickening agent. It looks like a white powder. Make sure you use cornstarch and not cornmeal. Cornmeal is yellow and gritty, and it tastes like tortilla chips.
- Vanilla: Vanilla extract brings out the fruit's sweetness and adds the most delicate flavor! But if you don't have it or don't want to use it, you can either leave it out or substitute it with another extract. Rosewater, orange blossom water, lemon extract, or almond extract would all be nice alternatives.
- Butter: I like to use unsalted butter because it lets me control the amount of salt in the dish. For a vegan or dairy free strawberry rhubarb crisp, use a plant-based butter that can substitute for dairy butter 1:1.
- Flour: All-purpose flour is my go-to, but you can swap it out for any kind of whole-grain option if you like. You may need slightly less if you go that route. A gluten-free flour blend that can sub 1:1 for regular flour should also work just fine, if you'd like to make a gluten-free strawberry rhubarb crisp.
- Brown Sugar: Light brown sugar is my favorite for this recipe, but dark brown will work too if that's what you've got! The end result will just look a little darker (obvs) and the flavor will be a little more earthy. White sugar will work too, or any other sweetener that swaps 1:1 for brown sugar. No need to jam it into the measuring cup. Just a loose pack will do!
- Oats: Oatmeal adds a pleasantly chewy texture to the topping. I like to use old-fashioned oats because they are so hearty. But use whatever you've got! Or substitute chopped nuts such as almonds, pistachios, pecans, or walnuts.
- Cinnamon: This recipe has just a hint of ground cinnamon. I don't like it to overpower the fruit filling. But it does add such a comforting warmth to this crisp recipe! Leave it out if you prefer, or add more if you're a real cinnamon lover.
- Salt: Salt carries the flavors and intensifies them. The end result won't taste salty, but it will make everything so much more flavorful! I like kosher salt best because it doesn't have any additives (table salt usually contains iodine and that can leave a bitter taste) so the flavor is pure, and it's very inexpensive and easy to find.
In Photos: How To Make Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp
Step 1: Make Filling
All you need to do is combine the strawberries, rhubarb, sugar, cornstarch, vanilla, and salt in a big bowl.
Then just stir/toss it all together so that every piece of fruit gets coated.
Step 2: Put In Baking Dish
Transfer it to your 3-quart baking dish, then get going on the topping.
Step 3: Make Crumb Topping
To the melted butter, add flour, brown sugar, oats, cinnamon, and salt.
Step 4: Mix
Mix it all together with a fork.
Step 5: Add On Top Of Fruit
At first, it will seem kinda doughy, but as it cools, it will become more crumbly. It will also crisp up a ton in the oven!
Layer it over the filling.
Step 6: Bake
Then bake the whole thing in the oven until the juices are thick and bubbly and the topping is browned and crunchy!
Pro Tip: Place the dish on a foil-lined baking sheet. It's highly likely that the juices will bubble over and make a big mess! This way, you can just remove the foil and throw it away. No scrubbing necessary!
Helpful Tips and Tricks
- Use ripe, flavorful strawberries for the best results. Their taste is a big part of the dessert.
- Cut the rhubarb into even pieces so it cooks evenly.
- Don't take the crisp out of the oven too soon. The filling should be bubbling, especially in the center, so it thickens properly.
- Let the crisp rest before serving. The filling will be loose at first, but it thickens as it cools.
- Cover with foil if needed. If the topping browns too fast, a loose piece of foil will protect it while the fruit finishes baking.
Make Ahead Friendly Dessert
It's a good idea to make this dish at least an hour or so before you plan to serve it. It's really got a ton of fruit in it, so it will take a while for it to cool down enough to eat.
If you'd like to get the prep out of the way early, you can do everything except bake this dish a few hours ahead of time.
Or you can freeze it! Baked, it will last for a couple of months in the freezer. Thaw in the fridge and reheat in the microwave or a low oven until warmed through.
Unbaked, it will also last a few months, frozen. And you don't even need to thaw it. It can go straight into a preheated oven to bake. But you may need to extend the bake time slightly. You'll know it's done when the juices are bubbly and thickened, and the topping is browned slightly and crunchy.
If you'd like to freeze your unbaked crisp, I would suggest prepping it in a foil pan. This way, your nice baking dish isn't tied up in the freezer for months on end.
More Strawberry Recipes
- Strawberry Bars
- Strawberry Cake
- Strawberry Daiquiri
- Strawberry Jam
- Strawberry Ice Cream
- Strawberry Shortcake
Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp
Ingredients
For the Strawberry Rhubarb Filling:
- 32 ounces (907.19 g) strawberries, hulled and quartered
- 2 pounds (907.18 g) rhubarb, diced
- 2 cups (400 g) granulated sugar
- ¼ cup (32 g) cornstarch
- 1 ½ teaspoons (6 g) vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoons (1.5 g) kosher salt
For the Crumb Topping:
- ½ cup (113.5 g) unsalted butter,, melted
- 1 cup (125 g) all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup (165 g) light brown sugar, loosely packed
- ⅓ cup (27 g) old-fashioned oats
- ½ teaspoon (1 g) ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon (1.5 g) kosher salt
- powdered sugar, (optional garnish)
Instructions
To Make the Strawberry Rhubarb Filling:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Place the strawberries, rhubarb, sugar, cornstarch, vanilla, and salt in a large bowl and toss together until evenly coated.
- Transfer the mixture to a 3-quart baking dish.
To Make the Crumb Topping:
- Toss the melted butter, flour, brown sugar, oats, cinnamon, and salt together until combined.
- Crumble the mixture over the filling and bake until the juices are bubbling and thickened (approx. 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes).*
- Dust with powdered sugar to garnish (optional).
Oh my word, this is to die for!!