Easy Strawberry Crumble recipe (with Oats)

Delicious strawberry crumble: easy and quick fruit dessert, no eggs. Vanilla Strawberry filling (with fresh or frozen strawberries) + crumble topping with oats.

Basic recipe, tips and variations! 🙂

Strawberry Crumble with Oats

Crumble is a very popular summer dessert to use fresh fruit. Just like French fruit clafoutis, it is easier to make than a French tart or an pie. No need to make a pie crust => no need to line a pie dish !

I found organic strawberries at the farmers market for a really good great price. I used some to make desserts.

Fresh strawberries don’t last long in the fridge.  This is what I did with the strawberries I couldn’t use right away:

• I froze some of them (I show you here how to freeze fresh strawberries without a machine)  and
• I used a method to store fresh strawberries longer in the fridge, using vinegar (see how to store fresh strawberries longer in the fridge).

Strawberry oats crumble Ingredients:

Strawberry crumble is made of two layers: a strawberry filling and a crumble topping (here with oats).

Strawberry filling ingredients:

• Strawberries: ripe but firm fresh strawberries. Wild strawberries are fine too. You can use frozen strawberries (no need to defrost before using them. Baking time is a little longer and you will get more juice).
• Sugar: white granulated sugar, brown sugar or half of each.
• Lemon juice: it brings a delicious tanginess to the crumble but it also preserves the color of the fruit.
• Cornstarch: to thicken any juices from the strawberries. You can use any type of starch (potato starch, tapioca starch…)
• Vanilla: for flavor 🙂 Vanilla and strawberries is a great combination. But you can use other flavors if you want.

Crumble topping Ingredients:

• Flour : all purpose flour.
• Sugar : granulated white sugar. You can use brown sugar or half of each.
• Oats: rolled old fashioned oats. You can use instant oatmeal (quick cooking oats).
• Butter: cold unsalted butter.
• Cinnamon powder: you can use other spices if you want. A pinch of nutmeg, ginger… Spices and sugar give a good taste to the crumble topping.

In the picture below, left: oats crumble topping ingredients, right: strawberry filling ingredients.

Tip

For a great crumble, use 3 parts of strawberry filling and 1 part of oats crumble topping.
Of course, it doesn’t have to be exact, you can use a little more or less of each. The beauty of this dessert is that the recipe is very forgiving.

How to make strawberry crumble with oats?

Crumble is one of the easiest fruit desserts! Only 3 steps:

Step 1: make the strawberry filling

Place strawberries in a colander. Rinse thoroughly with cold tap water.
Trim and cut strawberries in half or quarters depending on their size.

In a bowl, toss strawberries with sugar, lemon juice, cornstarch and vanilla.

Pour this mixture into a baking dish.

Step 2: make the crumble topping with oats

In a bowl, mix flour, sugar and spices. Add cold butter cut into small cubes and crumble using the tips of your fingers. Add oats and mix.

Sprinkle this crumble on top of the strawberry filling.

Tip

When you add the cold butter, work fast to crumble the mixture. You don’t want to completely melt the butter. That’s why it’s better to use the tips of your fingers.

Step 3: Bake the crumble

Baking us done in a preheated oven at 375°F | 190°C, about 30 minutes. Baking time vary from oven to oven.

Tip: How do you know if the crumble is done?

The crumble is done baking when the strawberry filling is bubbly on the edges of the baking dish and the topping golden brown.

Which baking dish to use for crumble?

For the quantities of fruit and topping given in the detailed recipe, use a baking dish (casserole dish | pie dish) or a cast iron pan of about 2 liters,  1 3/4″ to 2″ | 4.5 to 5 cm deep.

Choose one of these baking dishes (approximate size):

• 1 pie dish, what I used here, 9″ or 10″ | 23 to 26 cm
• 1 square baking dish 8 x 8″ or 9 x 9″ | 23 x 23 cm or 25 x 25 cm
• 1 oval baking dish, about 12″ | 30.5 cm
• 1 rectangular baking dish 11 x 7″ | 28 x 18 cm

MEASURING CUPS & SPOONS
I use American measuring cups and spoons.

How to serve oats strawberry crumble ?

This crumble is great served warm. But you can also serve it cold if you prefer.
When served as a dessert, it’s great topped with 1 or 2 scoops of vanilla ice cream.
It’s also good with Chantilly or whipped cream, crème anglaise (French custard).

Leftovers can be used for breakfast: as topping for yogurt or overnight oats.

Strawberry oats crumble variations

This crumble is very customizable. You can vary this recipe by adapting the strawberry vanilla filling, the crumble topping or both.

Strawberry filling variations

Filling variations: use other fruit, fresh or frozen, to replace part or all the strawberries. Other berries, stone fruit like apricots, nectarines or peaches, apples, pears, bananas, rhubarb.

Replace white sugar with brown sugar or Muscovado sugar. Or use a combination.

Replace vanilla with orange flower water or other flavor to taste.

Crumble topping variations

Almond version: replace 1/4 of the flour with almond flour and all the oats with sliced almonds slightly crushed.

Hazelnut version: replace 1/4 of the flour with hazelnut flour and the oats with crushed hazelnuts.

You can use the same way nuts and pistachios.

Use brown sugar instead of white sugar.

Replace flour with crushed cookies or crumbled cake. Use less sugar and less butter.

Other recipe ideas with strawberries

Soon on the blog :

• Crepes filled with fresh strawberry and Chantilly
• Strawberry crumble squares
• Strawberry Mini tarts (with pastry cream)
• No churn strawberry ice cream
• Fraisier (classic French dessert)
• Strawberry charlotte (Charlotte aux fraises)
• Strawberry sauce (coulis)
• Strawberry jam
• French strawberry yogurt cake
• Very moist strawberry cake
• Strawberry Coffeecake
• American strawberry pie
• Strawberry banana smoothie
• Strawberry cheesecake
• Strawberry covered chocolate (dipped in dark chocolate, milk chocolate or white chocolate)

Strawberry How Tos :

• How to freeze strawberries without a machine? Step by step
• How to store fresh strawberries longer in the fridge?
• How to roast strawberries in the oven?
• The best way to wash organic strawberries without altering their taste?
• How to wash non organic strawberries to get rid of pesticides?

Other crumble recipes

Soon :

• Apple crumble
• Strawberry rhubarb crumble
• Apricot crumble with almonds
• Raspberry crumble
• Mango pear crumble

Print

Strawberry crumble recipe with oats

Strawberry crumble is an easy and popular summer fruit dessert. It's made of two layers: a strawberry filling and a crumble topping with oats and flour. Read text above for tips, variations, other recipes with strawberries and other fruit dessert ideas! 🙂

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword Crumble, oats, Strawberries

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Servings 8 people

Ingredients

For the Strawberry filling:

• 2 lbs fresh strawberries trimmed and cut in half or quarters depending on size, see notes
• 1 to 2 Tbsp lemon juice
• 2 Tbsp cornstarch or other starch
• 4 Tbsp sugar 1/4 cup | 50 g sugar, white granulated sugar, brown sugar or half of each
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

For the crumble topping:

• ¾ cup all purpose flour 100 g
• ¾ cup sugar 150 g or a little less
• 1/2 to 3/4 cup old fashioned oats 45 g to 68 g
• ½ tsp cinnamon powder
• 1 pinch of salt
• 1/2 cup cold unsalted butter cut into small cubes 8 Tbsp | 110 g

To serve:

• vanilla Ice cream optional

Instructions

1. Rinse strawberries, drain, trim and cut into halves or quarters, depending on size.
2. Preheat oven to 375°F | 190°C.

Make the strawberry filling:

1. In a bowl, toss strawberries with all the other strawberry filling ingredient. Pour mixture in the baking dish. You can toss the ingredients directly in the dish if you want.

Make the crumble topping:

1. In another bowl, mix flower, sugar, salt and spices. Add the butter and crumble with the tip of your fingers. Work fast so you don't melt the butter.

2. Add oats and mix to coat.

3. Sprinkle this crumble on top of the strawberry filling.

Bake the crumble:

1. Bake in the hot oven, middle rack, about 30 minutes, or until strawberry filling is bubbly on the edges of the baking dish and the topping golden brown.

To serve :

1. Serve warm, with vanilla Ice cream.

Recipe Notes

STRAWBERRIES

You can use frozen strawberries. No need to defrost before using them.

Preferably, use organic strawberries. For non organic strawberries, see how to wash them to get rid of pesticides.

BAKING DISH SIZE

Use a baking dish (casserole dish | pie dish) or a cast iron pan of about 2 liters,  1 3/4" to 2" | 4.5 to 5 cm deep.

Choose one of these baking dishes (approximate size):

1 pie dish, what I used here, 9" or 10" | 23 to 26 cm
1 square baking dish 8 x 8" or 9 x 9" | 23 x 23 cm or 25 x 25 cm
1 oval baking dish, about 12" | 30.5 cm
1 rectangular baking dish 11 x 7" | 28 x 18 cm

MEASURING CUPS & SPOONS

I use American measuring cups and spoons.