Now that blueberries are here, it’s time to get to work on some great ways to showcase these delicious jewels. And in the past few seasons, I have become a little obsessed with the vivid purple hue blueberries can add to a glaze (or ganache). It’s so dramatic! I want to find as many ways as possible to show off that beautiful hue. So here I’ve made a sweet and buttery cookie bar, studded with fresh blueberries and added a drizzle of flamboyant sweetness. These bars are delicious and summery but I am not going to lie – that showstopping appearance really makes them worthwhile.
The bars are pretty classic – butter cookie base topped with berries and a further bit of cookie crumble. The batter is pretty thick, so I use a lightly dampened fingers to press it into an even layer to the edges of the pan, then an offset spatula to smooth the top. I find letting the bars cook slightly, then using that spatula to spread the crumble just a bit, gives you the craggy, knobbly top that holds the glaze so well. Cook some berries for a few minutes with a little lemon for freshness and press then through a sieve into sifted powdered sugar to create that dynamic glaze. There’s a little art here, adding a few drops of milk until you get a spoonable consistency perfect for the glaze.
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Ingredients
- For the Bars
¾ cups (1 ½ sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 ¼ granulated sugar
½ cup light brown sugar
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/3 all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon kosher salt
1 pint fresh blueberries
- For the Glaze
1 cup fresh blueberries
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
1 cup confectioners’ sugar (plus more if needed)
1 Tablespoon milk (plus more if needed)
Directions
- For the Bars
- Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9 by 13 baking pan with non-stick foil or parchment leaving some overhang to lift out the finished bars.
- Beat the butter and sugars in the bowl of a stand mixer on medium high speed until well combined, light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Beat in the vanilla. Beat in the flour, baking powder and salt on low speed in two additions, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. The batter will be very thick. Scoop ¾ of the batter into the prepared pan and use lightly dampened fingers to press it into an even layer. Use an offset spatula or the back of a spoon to smooth the top (I find it works best if you lightly wet the spatula). Distribute the berries over the top of the top of the batter evenly, then crumble the remaining batter over the berries – you will not completely cover the top, just distribute it as evenly as you can. Put the pan in the oven and cook for ten minutes, then use the spatula to lightly spread the dolloped batter out – again, you aren’t’ covering the top, just distributing it a little more. Cook a further 15 – 20 minutes, until golden brown and a tester inserted in the center comes out clean.
- For the Glaze
- While the bars are baking, sift one cup of confectioners’ sugar into a medium bowl and set aside. Put the blueberries and lemon juice in a small saucepan and heat over medium heat until the berries soften and begin to break down, stirring frequently. Put the berries in a sieve you sifted the sugar with set over a bowl and press out as much purée as you can, leaving skins and seeds behind. Leave to cool completely in the fridge.
- When the bars have cooled, beat 2 Tablespoons of berry puree into the sifted confectioners’ sugar, whisking well. Now you need to use a little art – you want a glaze that is the consistency of heavy cream or buttermilk, so add a bit of milk until you reach this point. Adjust with a little extra powdered sugar as needed.
- Drizzle the glaze decoratively over the bars and leave for an hour or so to set, then lift the bars from the pan and cut into squares. The bars will keep in an airtight container for a day.
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