Made with a shortbread crust and raspberry preserves, these crowd-pleasing Raspberry Bars are a sweet treat to make in the spring, summer or any time of the year! Easy to make with 5 ingredients in 1 bowl and the crust doubles as the crumb topping.
Craving more crowd-pleasing vegan dessert bars? Then you won’t want to miss my Vegan Lemon Bars, Blueberry Pie Bars, and Blackberry Pie Bars!
I love serving these Vegan Raspberry Crumb Bars to my friends and family because they’re always a hit. The shortbread crust, buttery crumble topping, and raspberry preserves in the middle are just too good to miss!
They’re one of the best treats for spring and summer, always a crowd-pleaser at the Mother’s Day and Easter brunches, and surprisingly easy to make.
Why you’ll love these raspberry crumble bars
- A berrylicious summer treat – These raspberry shortbread bars top jammy raspberry preserves over a shortbread cookie crust.
- 1 bowl and 5 ingredients – The 4-ingredient shortbread crust quickly comes together in one bowl, while the store-bought raspberry preserves are delicious right out of the jar.
- Surprisingly easy to make! The simple dough and jarred raspberry preserves keep these dessert bars quick and easy. Perfect for a fuss-free treat to share with friends!
How to make vegan raspberry bars
Find the complete recipe with measurements in the recipe card below.
Combine the flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Stir the softened vegan butter or coconut oil into the dry mix until you’re left with a crumbly shortbread dough.
You can experiment with mix-ins in the cookie crust if you’d like! Add up to 1/4 cup of vegan white chocolate chips, chopped nuts, or dried coconut flakes for extra flavor. A couple tablespoons of lemon zest would also be nice if you love lemons and raspberries together.
Set 1 cup of the shortbread dough aside and dump the rest into a baking pan. Press it into an even layer, then bake until it’s lightly browned.
Spread the raspberry preserves over the warm cookie crust, then sprinkle the reserved shortbread dough evenly over the top. Bake once more until the raspberry filling is bubbling.
While the bars are baking, make the optional glaze by whisking the powdered sugar and almond milk together until smooth.
Set the raspberry bars aside to cool. Lift them out of the pan, transfer them to a cooling rack, and let them cool for at least 2 hours. Cut them into squares, then drizzle the glaze over top. Enjoy!
For eye-catching raspberry bars, sprinkle dried coconut flakes, lemon zest, fresh raspberries, mint leaves, vegan white chocolate chips, or sliced almonds on top after adding the glaze.
Frequently asked questions
Yes they can. Substitute a mix of a quality gluten-free flour blend, like Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 Gluten Free Flour or King Arthur Measure for Measure for the all-purpose flour.
Not if you don’t want to! Try using apricot, strawberry, or blueberry preserves instead. Or, in the fall, use apple butter! Just make sure to drizzle my Vegan Salted Caramel Sauce over top before serving (yum!).
This recipe makes 16 raspberry bars when it’s made in a 9×13” baking pan. If you don’t have a 9×13” baking pan, split the bars between two smaller pans instead.
Once they’re firm and sliced into bars, transfer them to an airtight container and store at room temperature for 5 days. They’ll keep for longer in the fridge, but they will harden quite a bit (especially if you use coconut oil) so let them come to room temperature for a little while before enjoying.
The bars also freeze well for up to 1 month or so.
Vegan Raspberry Bars
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup vegan butter (or coconut oil), softened
- 13 ounces (about 1 1/4 cups) raspberry preserves
Optional glaze
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons almond milk
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Line the bottom and sides of a 9 x 13 inch baking pan with parchment paper, leaving some overhang on the sides for easy removal.
- In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar and salt. Now add the softened vegan butter or coconut oil, and stir until everything is well combined. The mixture should be rather crumbly. Use your hands if you need to.
- Set aside 1 cup of the shortbread dough, in a smaller bowl. This is your crumble topping.
- Press the mixture evenly into the baking pan. Bake for 15 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and turn the oven up to 350 degrees F.
- Spread the raspberry preserves over the warm crust. Sprinkle on the topping. Place in the oven and bake for 30-40 minutes. The filling should be bubbling on the edges and in the middle.
- Allow the bars to cool in the pan for 20 minutes. Lift the bars out of the pan with the parchment paper, transfer to a cooling rack and let them cool for at least 2 hours, if possible. Cut into squares and drizzle with optional glaze.
Optional glaze
- In a small bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar and almond milk until a glaze is formed.
Video
Notes
- Gluten-free – Substitute a quality gluten-free flour mix, such as Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 or King Arthur Measure for Measure flour.
- Makes about 16 large bars. You may halve the recipe and make in an 8-inch square pan if desired.
- Try using a different flavor of fruit jam, such as apricot, strawberry or blueberry. Or use apple butter in the Fall.
Hello Nora a quick question. I am looking for a fun bar to take on vacation. I didn’t want to bar that would fall apart into crumbs in my carry-on bag. So wanted to find out if these would be a good choice to take on the plane. Otherwise I will make the delicious pecan bars.
I think these would be fine, but if they get knocked around a lot they may crumble somewhat. The pecan bars are probably more stable for sure! Enjoy whichever you make!
I try this recipe, easy and delicious. Mine come out different but good I use strawberry preserve and planning to use passion fruit or mango next time.
Thank for sharing!
That’s fun to try with different flavors! I’m glad the bars came out delicious for you! Thanks for sharing your review!
I have made these several times!! They are amazing. I make one and a half times the amount of crust called for because our family likes a lot of crust. We also like raspberry filling so I add a bit more jam. I’ve made them with vegan butter before and coconut oil, both options were equally good. So use what you have!
Hi Alice. Thanks for sharing your great review! I’m glad you love the raspberry bars!
I’ve made these a few times. They always come out perfect! I may try blueberry preserves next time and use lemon juice in place of the milk for the topping like another reviewer tried. Thank you for such an awesome recipe.
Thank you for sharing your review, Debbie. I’m glad you love the bars!
This is one of the best vegan baking recipes that I have ever used! I have been vegan for a very long time and have spent a lot of time working on mastering savory recipes. I have dabbled in baking but not been thrilled with the results. What an amazing, buttery result I achieved with your very brilliant recipes! Thank you.
Thank you so much, it’s one of my personal favorite desserts!
So good! And relatively simple to make. I made my glaze with lemon juice to give it a little extra zing. Thanks!
Lemon juice in the glaze sounds delicious! Thank you for sharing! I’m glad you liked the bars!
I forgot to give this recipe 5 stars. Thank you .
I made this tonight , it was delicious!! I did half concord grape and half concord grape and peanut butter. It was a huge success !!
I’m so glad to hear thatQ
I’m making these right now and I’m so excited!! My dad has recently gone vegan and he loves it when I cook for him.
That’s so great!
Amazing and incredibly easy as always ! Thank you
You’re welcome!
My friend made these and they were AMAZING! Then I tried and the shortbread turned out grainy, like the sugar crystals never melted maybe? Any idea what happened? I remember the shortbread was more like sugar cookie dough when I mixed it up. Pretty sure I followed the amounts properly though.
I’m glad you enjoyed them! Did you use large sugar crystals, like coarse sugar or anything? I always use fine organic sugar for baking. I’m not sure why the sugar would be grainy otherwise.
Nora, you beautiful genius! These are incredible, just like all your other recipes. I halved the recipe and spread a layer of your vegan lemon curd with the raspberry jam. Unbelievable.
That sounds delicious!
A family member made these on vacation and they were SO.GOOD. I nearly ate the entire pan! They were thick and gooey and just had the best texture. However, I’m so sad because I went to make them using the exact instructions and ingredients but they turned out really thin and dry. I used a 9×13 metal pan with parchment and there was just barely enough shortbread to create a really thin layer. Any idea of what could be happening? Everyone else’s seems to be turning out ok.
Another note: there was hardly enough crumble to make a decent base layer and have enough left for the topping. Do you use chunks of the shortbread for the topping or just finely sprinkle it? Hope that makes sense!
I’m so glad you enjoyed them! So it’s hard to say what happened when you made them. Your pan isn’t actually larger than 9×13 inches is it? Because there should definitely be enough shortbread, when you pack it down in the pan. But I would say if you really want them super thick then just use an 8×8 inch pan instead. I think that would be too thick myself but maybe it’s more what you are going for. I sprinkle on the crumble (1 cup) in little and bigger chunks.
They were so easy to make and taste so good! We decided to put old fashioned oats into the mixture for the top and it was amazing!
Sounds great, so glad you enjoyed them!
If I am making the half portion, do I need to change the temp or time I cook the bars?
They may need a little less time in the oven, perhaps 25-30 minutes. Temp is the same.
I had fresh strawberries & raspberries on hand so I mashed & drained those & used that in replace of the jam. Turned out great.
Sounds delicious!! Glad it turned out great!
My family loves this recipe! It tasted butter, soft, and perfectly sweet. I used less sugar and a combo of regular and sugar free preserves and it turned out delicious!
Thank you!
You’re so welcome!! So glad you liked it!!
I found cooking it for 40 min made the Crust hard and dried out the preserves. Can I cook it less without ruining recipe b
Sure! Perhaps your oven runs hot. Make sure to bake it in the center of the oven as well, not the bottom rack. That will help the crust not burn or cook too fast.
Hi I’m allergic to wheat and almond flour. And cows milk/real butter. Can you suggest a flour alternative flour for your cake and raspberry bar and muffin recipes?
Thank you
Catherine
A quality gluten free blend is your best bet, I like Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 Gluten Free Flour.
My friend made these and I can’t stop eating them lol They’re SO GOOD.
I love to hear that!! I’m so glad they’re good!
DELICIOUS ?, and easy to make! I am not very good at making desserts, this was easy and delicious. Thank you
You’re so welcome!! I’m so glad they were delicious!
SO GOOD! My boyfriend could hardly believe it was vegan, nor could I. Will definitely be making this again.
I’m so glad! Thank you.
These are so simple to make and really delicious. I used blueberry jam instead of raspberry, because that’s what I had on hand, and I would definitely use a tart jam next time- blueberry is too sweet and this needs something bolder with some tartness.
Nevertheless, these were so yummy!
I’m so glad you enjoyed them!! I agree, something tart is a nice combo.
If I’m out of sugar can I use agave instead or would that be too much liquid?
I don’t think agave would work so well as it would add a lot of extra liquid, throwing off the recipe. You could try it, but I can’t guarantee it will work sorry!
I would like to substitute the coconut oil, I loved the bar but too much coconut taste. If I use vegan butter, would it still be 1 cup, melted? Thank you
You can always use refined coconut oil, which has absolutely NO coconut flavor. Vegan butter works too and I have used it before here. Yes, it’s the same amount. Thanks!