Blackberry White Chocolate Streusel Bars

Did you know that blackberries are one of the top ten best antioxidant containing fruits? They help to prevent cancer and heart disease, and are rich in fiber. To fully benefit from these highly nutritious gems with a full serving, you will be needing to eat 6 of these bars. It's a win-win situation, friends.


I had some blackberries in my fridge, and was envisioning using them in a bar treat with some white chocolate. Since I'm not very good at completely inventing recipes, I adapted the one I found on this blog:
http://unegaminedanslacuisine.com/ to include a white chocolate drizzle.


Blackberry White Chocolate Streusel Bars


For the bars:
1 cup granulated sugar
1 Tablespoon of fresh lemon zest (about 1 medium-sized lemon)
1 teaspoon baking Powder
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup (2 sticks) of butter, Cold and cut into pieces
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon salt


For the filling:
2 cups fresh blackberries
1 cup of blackberry jam 
2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
3 teaspoons cornstarch


For the drizzle:
2 oz. white chocolate, broken into pieces (or 1/3 cup chips)
2 Tablespoons cream


Preheat the oven to 375 F. Line a 9x13 inch pan with foil and butter/spray the foil.

In a large bowl, combine the lemon zest and 1 cup sugar. Using your fingertips, rub the zest into the sugar until it becomes moist and fragrant.

Add the flour, baking powder, and salt. Use a fork or pastry cutter to blend in the butter. *You can use your fingers for this part, just be sure to work quickly to not melt the butter.

Stir in the egg. Dough will be crumbly and coarse, like thick wet sand. Pat half of dough into the prepared pan.

In a separate, large bowl, stir together the 2 Tablespoons of sugar and cornstarch. Gently mix in the blackberries and jam. Carefully sprinkle/spread the blackberry mixture evenly over the crust (leave about a 1/4-inch border around the edges of the pan so the berries won't burn.) Crumble remaining dough over the berry layer.

Bake in preheated oven for 30-35 minutes, or until top is slightly brown.  *I cooked mine for 30, and they ended up being on the messy side-I will probably leave them in a little longer next time.


Cool completely, then prepare the glaze:
Combine the cream and chocolate in a bowl and microwave 30 seconds. Stir until smooth. Use the spoon to drizzle over the bars. *If your glaze is thinner than you like, put the bowl in the freezer for 15 minutes and it will thicken up.