Vegan Berry Crumble
This vegan berry crumble is made with oats and whole wheat flour for a healthier take on dessert. You can use fresh or frozen berries, so this recipe is tasty no matter the season!
To tell you the truth, this recipe took quite a few tries before I really nailed it. I wanted to make the ingredients list as clean as possible without sacrificing taste or texture. I also wanted to provide a few common substitutions since I know from my own baking experience, I like to use what I have on hand.
Iโm pumped to say that this vegan crumble is downright heavenly.
For this recipe, Iโm using whole wheat pastry flour. That ingredient typically sparks the question โWhat is whole wheat pastry flour and how is it different from other flours?โ Great question, Iโm glad you asked.
What is Whole Wheat Pastry Flour?
Whole wheat pastry flour is milled from a different kind of wheat. Itโs made from white soft wheat rather than red hard wheat. Donโt let the term โwhiteโ confuse you. It is still 100% whole wheat flour. But it has a lower protein content than regular whole wheat flour so it has a much better texture for things like baked goods. I like the Bob’s Red Mill brand.
Vegan Crumble Substitution Suggestions
- If you donโt have whole wheat pastry flour, donโt stress. You can substitute regular all-purpose flour if you need to. Youโll still get a little boost of fiber and whole grains from the oats!
- Secondly, Iโm using coconut oil in this recipe. If you donโt have any, you can use melted butter, but I wanted to keep this recipe vegan so I opted for coconut oil. It does add a subtle coconut flavor which I love but if you absolutely hate coconut, you can substitute butter or a vegan butter like Earth Balance. Just be sure to melt it before mixing it in!
- Lastly, letโs talk about fruit! Iโve made this with blackberries or blueberries both fresh or frozen. While fresh blackberries were my favorite, the blueberries did add a bit of extra sweetness. I also liked using frozen wild blueberries because theyโre smaller than blackberries or conventional blueberries so it was easier to create an even fruit layer.
Whether you try blackberries or blueberries, it will be delicious! Ok, letโs get baking!
PrintVegan Berry Crumble
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 55 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Yield: 12 bars 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: Crumble
- Diet: Vegan
Description
This vegan berry crumble is made with oats and whole wheat flour for a healthier take on dessert. You can use fresh or frozen berries, so this recipe is tasty no matter the season!
Ingredients
- 1 ยฝ cups oats
- ยฝ cup light brown sugar, packed
- ยพ cup whole wheat pastry flour
- ยผ teaspoon baking soda
- ยผ teaspoon salt
- โ cup coconut oil, melted
- 1 โ cup blackberries or blueberries
- 3 tablespoons of blackberry preserves or jam
- ยฝ teaspoon cornstarch
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Line an 8×8 pan with parchment paper, leaving a couple of inches of overhang on two sides.
- In a large bowl, combine the oats, brown sugar, pastry flour, baking soda, and salt.
- Mix in the coconut oil until well combined. The mixture should be crumbly but the coconut oil should be evenly distributed.
- Press 2 cups of the oat mixture into the bottom of the parchment lined pan. Save the rest of the oat mixture for the topping.
- Bake for 20 minutes.
- In a small bowl, combine the berries, fruit preserves and cornstarch.
- Remove the baked crust from the oven and spread the fruit mixture evenly on top.
- Sprinkle with remaining oat mixture.
- Bake for another 30-35 minutes until slightly browned on top.
- Let cool for 5 minutes then remove from the pan and let cool on a wire rack.
- Let cool completely before cutting, about 1 hour.
- Slice into 12 bars.
Notes
This recipe was adapted from Eating Well.
Feel free to use fresh or frozen berries in this recipe.
How to Serve Vegan Crumble
Be sure to let these cool completely before cutting. I like to take the crumble out of the pan by carefully lifting the parchment paper then letting it cool on a wire rack. If you don’t have a wire rack, just let it cool on a cutting board. Be gentle with this dish until it is completely cooled! Fair warning, these bars are pretty crumbly. (I guess that’s why they call it a crumble!) Theyโll hold together enough to be cut into bars, but grab a napkin! That said, theyโre also delightful served in a bowl with a scoop of ice cream. But you probably already knew that, right?
Looking for other healthy dessert recipes? Here are a few of my favorites:
Vegan Chickpea Chocolate Chip Cookies
I made this for our 4th of July dessert using a mix of fresh blueberries, raspberries, and strawberries. I doubled the recipe, and we enjoyed the leftover crumble with our coffee in the morning. Winner! I thought using the berry jam and a bit cornstarch was a stroke of genius, it worked perfectly. My only suggestion would be to either make the crust a little more cohesive, or to describe the very loose and dry texture in the text of the recipe. It was a bit alarming to have a bowl of dry oats, flour, sugar (with minimal oil) to pour into the baking pan. This recipe yielded a very good result, but it took a bit of faith to move ahead with the crust.
That’s really great feedback, Katie! Thank you!
This is really delicious. I’m not vegan, but it didn’t stop me from making and totally loving this lovely berry crumble. Thanks for the tasty recipe!
I am glad you you kept trying because this crumble is absolute perfection! There wasnโt a crumb left behind!
I made these bars for a luncheon and everyone LOVED them! I can’t wait to make them throughout the spring and summer with fresh in-season berries!
Never heard of whole wheat pastry flour but it looks like a very useful ingredient. Better than using all purpose flour which always makes me uneasy because it is so empty nutrition wise. Love how your berry crumble looks!
Thanks, Saima! I love sneaking in healthier ingredients where I can!
Crumbles are my favorite go-to dessert for the warmer weather and when the fruit is in season. Can’t wait to make this soon!
Yes!! This recipe is getting me excited for warmer temperatures!
How wonderful that you’ve given different options for berries to use in this crumble. Sounds delicious no matter what berry you use.
This is one of my favorite recipes! You just can’t go wrong with berries and pastry!
I love how easy and adaptable this recipe is!