Sour Cream & Coconut Milk Berry Crumble Bars {Guest Post-Running with the Devil(ed) Eggs}

Today I have a special treat for you in more ways than one. Katrin from Running with the Devil(ed) Eggs is back here at CEK and this time she brought these amazing Sour Cream & Coconut Milk Berry Crumble Bars. She's been very busy since her first appearance last summer including getting married and is currently expecting a child in about 9 weeks.  It's always such a pleasure to have you here...take it away Katrin! 

Holy heck batman, I sat down and decided it was HIGH time to create a dessert.  And there was success! We don't generally keep dessert on hand on a reoccurring basis do you?

Growing up we didn't have meals that were followed by some sort of treat unless I was at my Omi and Opa's house and nine times out of ten it was ice cream - guess that's where my love of it came from! If its in the house it gets eaten, and I like to fill us up with goodness (i.e. veggies, proteins) not bad for you goodness.

BUT every now and then my sweet tooth kicks in (actually it never goes away) and there is a desperate need to have something to curb my cravings.  Sometimes rifling through the baking cupboard to find a handful of chocolate chips just doesn't cut it!  Don't tell me you've never done that.....marshmallows?  Never mind.

Confession: I've never actually made a crumb bar before - eaten em, yes. The ones I have had were boring, flat tasting. However I saw a photo of some sour cream crumb bars on Pinterest from Crunchy Creamy Sweet which looked like they would have a depth and decided I could enhance this recipe to my own tastes (or rather what I had in my cupboard). 

My creation turned out awesome!  Just the right combination of textures and flavors, really proud of how they turned out first go - I mean sometimes when you start messing with ingredients and proportions when it comes to baking the first 6 rounds turn out to be a failure, not the case here.

Want some?

Sour Cream & Coconut Milk Berry Crumble Bars

Ingredients

For the Crust & Topping

• 1 tbsp. ginger
• 1/3 c. shredded coconut
• 4 tbsp. slivered almonds
• 1 1/2 c. flour
• 1/2 c. brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 c. butter, melted and cooled

For the Filling

• 1/2 c. sour cream
• 1/3 c. coconut milk
• 1 tbsp. cornstarch
• 2/3 c. sugar
• 1 tbsp. flour
• 3 tbsp. coconut
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1 c. blueberries (approx.)
• 1 c. blackberries (approx.)

Directions

For the Crust & Topping

1. Prepare your 8x8 inch baking pan by buttering the sides and bottom and then adding parchment so that it over hangs slightly for easy removal later.
2. Pre heat oven to 350F.
3. In a bowl, combine all of the ingredients up to the butter.  Stir to combine and then add your butter until it is crumbly.  Reserve about 1/2 a cup *maybe slightly more*.
4. Press the mixture into your prepared pan and set aside while you prepare your filling.

For the Filling  All you need is a bowl and a whisk!  No need for anything fancy this time :)

1. Start by adding your cornstarch to your coconut milk and whisk to incorporate.  Then add the rest of the ingredients(except berries) and stir.
2. Simply pour the mixture over the layer of crust, top with your berries and then the rest of the crumble/crust mixture.
3. Bake about 30 - 35 minutes or until top is lightly browned and filling is set. Let cool completely. 
4. You can cut them with a knife at this point (wiping it clean after every cut) OR you could toss in the fridge for  15-20 minutes then slice.

I'm with you Katrin...sometimes the chocolate chips don't cut it and I can't wait to try this recipe. Thanks again for sharing this with us today! 

Run (don't walk!) over to Katrin's blog, Running with the Devil(ed) Eggs or you can follow her on Facebook or Twitter!