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Raspberry coconut bars

Raspberry Coconut Bars

Easy Raspberry Coconut Bars have a buttery oatmeal coconut crust that holds a homemade raspberry jam and fresh raspberries topped with a coconut streusel crumble. They make the perfect summer dessert bar!

Course Dessert
Prep Time 40 minutes
Cook Time 35 minutes
Chilling time 3 hours
Servings 16 bars

Ingredients

Raspberry Jam Filling

  • ½ teaspoon lime zest
  • 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
  • cup granulated sugar
  • 2 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 2 cups fresh raspberries for jam
  • 1 cup fresh raspberries for filling

Base & Topping

  • ¾ cup rolled oats
  • 1 cup all purpose flour
  • ¾ cup unsweetened shredded coconut divided ½ cup and ¼ cup
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ cup lightly packed brown sugar
  • ½ cup cold butter (1 stick) cubed, into small pieces
  • 2 tablespoons cold water

Instructions

  1. Make the raspberry jam: Whisk lime juice, lime zest, sugar and cornstarch in a medium-sized saucepan. Add 2 cups raspberries.

  2. Cook over medium-high heat while mashing the raspberries with a wooden spoon. Stir constantly, bring the mixture to a light boil, while stirring, reduce heat to medium and cook until thickened, about 2 minutes. Transfer jam to a bowl, refrigerate to cool for 30 minutes to 1 hour.

  3. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare an 8” x 8” baking pan by lining it with two long pieces of 8” wide parchment paper laying each in opposite directions extending the ends over each side of the pan to create handles. If necessary use cooking spray to stabilize the parchment paper.

  4. Make the base and topping mixture: Into the bowl of a food processor add rolled oats, flour, ½ cup of the coconut (reserve remaining ¼ cup coconut for topping), baking powder and brown sugar. Pulse 4 times until the rolled oats and coconut are coarsely ground. Add cubed butter and pulse about 8 - 10 times until the butter breaks down. Add water and pulse again about 2 - 4 times until the dough begins to bind.

  5. Pour ⅔’s of the base and topping mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan to create the base (reserve remaining ⅓ of mixture for the streusel topping). Press down evenly and firmly with the back of a spoon. Bake for 15 - 18 minutes, until lightly golden, remove from oven and leave oven on.

  6. Spread the cooled raspberry jam over the baked base, leaving a ½” border around the edges to avoid the jam making contact with the sides of the baking pan. Arrange 1 cup raspberries over top of the jam.

  7. Loosely sprinkle the remaining ⅓ of the base and topping mixture in dollops over top the raspberry filling to create the streusel topping. Then sprinkle the remaining ¼ cup coconut on top and pat down lightly.

  8. Return the pan to the oven and bake for 30 – 35 minutes, stopping to tent the top with a sheet of foil for the last 10 minutes of baking time (to stop the coconut topping from over browning) until the base and topping is lightly golden-brown and the berries bubbling.

  9. Remove from oven, set pan on a rack to cool to room temperature, about 2 hours. Leave the bars in the pan then refrigerate for 1 - 2 hours or longer to completely chill. Once completely chilled, remove from pan by lifting the parchment paper handles and transfer to a cutting board. Cut while cold into 16 squares. Serve immediately or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for a few days.

Recipe Notes

  1. Line the baking pan with parchment paper for easy release of the bars.
  2. Frozen raspberries can be used in place of fresh – do not thaw before using.
  3. Leave a ½” border when spreading the jam on the base so it does not make contact with edges of the pan.
  4. Do not add more raspberry filling than the amount recommended as the bars may not set.
  5. Place a piece of foil over the pan after the first 20 minutes of baking to prevent the coconut topping from browning too quickly,
  6. For best results and cleanest cuts, cut bars after they have completely cooled in refrigerator and wipe the knife after each cut.