Peach Crumb Bars

Georgia - the Peach State.  Before I moved to the great state of Georgia, I imagined trees covered with the sweet, fuzzy fruit lining every roadway and in the backyard of every home. 🍑  Truth is - peach trees are not all that common here. 😅  Personally, I think we should consider renaming the Peach State something more appropriate like, "The Sweet Tea State" or "Georgia - Bless Your Heart." 😂   Who wouldn't want to drive around with a "Bless Your Heart" license plate? 

I've gotten off track.😅 Back to the lack of peach trees in the "Peach State."  When we first made our residence in this Southern oasis, I actively searched for peach orchards where we could go and pick our own fruit.  Unfortunately, all of the peach orchards seemed to be located in the Southern part of the state and farther than I was willing to travel in pursuit of summer produce.  

Fast forward 17 years - and a brand new u-pick peach orchard opened up right around the corner from our house.  I have absolutely no idea how long it takes for a peach tree to grow to full maturity and be an abundant fruit producer but I'm thrilled that someone had the foresight to plant these trees so that I could pick my own peaches this summer.  

Of course we went to the peach orchard as soon as it opened and the fresh peaches that we picked were sweet and juicy and super delicious.  I made blueberry pie, blackberry crisp and an apple cobbler all within a month so I was looking for something different to do with our peaches.   That is how I landed on Peach Crumble Bars.  I would classify these crispy, buttery handheld treats as a peach cobbler - peach pie fusion.  They are amazing!

Peach Crumb Bars
Crust:
1 cup sugar 
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup unsalted butter cold, cut into cubes 
1 large egg lightly beaten

Filling:
½ cup sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
4-5 cups peaches, peeled and diced 
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

Icing:
1 cup powdered sugar 
¼ teaspoon almond extract
1 tablespoon milk 

Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and cinnamon for crust in bowl of food processor. 

Cut in butter until crumbly. 

Mix in egg.  

Press a little more than half into a greased 9x13" pan.  

Whisk together sugar, cornstarch and cinnamon for filling.  

Dice peaches.

Add peaches and toss to combine.  

Drizzle peaches with lemon juice and spread filling over over crust. 

Press remaining crust mixture with hands to create clumps. Scatter the crumbs over the fruit layer. ​

Bake 40-45 minutes at 375.  Let cool completely.

Combine filling ingredients.  Drizzle over bars. 

Serve with ice cream.  FYI - we totally had to borrow/steal some vanilla ice cream from a neighbor because we had none and couldn't bear the thought of eating these warm peach crumble bars without it.  😅🍨

​Ciao!

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