Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble is what summer dreams are made of! A mixture of sweet & tart fruit, topped with a golden oat crisp and a touch of brown butter frosting (yes, on a crumble!).
There's so much texturally going for this fruit crumble; smooth rich buttery cream cheese frosting with hints of nutty flavor, chunky fruit that's sweet and tart, crunchy oat topping with hints of cinnamon. What's not to love?!
I love making individual desserts for a gathering. No need to scrounge up a knife or server, just pass out cups!
Strawberry rhubarb dessert in individual cups makes for an easy cleanup too! Especially if you use a plastic 9oz cup with a lid.
Easily transport them in a box or baking dish to neighborhood parties! Store half the cups in the fridge and take them out as needed.
Strawberry Cheesecake Bars have a similar flavor profile and are also super easy to cut in advance for easy passing. You can also make a full size Strawberry Crumble if you are having a sit-down occasion. Don't forget Strawberry Cream Cheese Pie for the ultimate in no bake desserts.
Jump to:
Recipe Ingredients
- Strawberries: Use the freshest, reddest berries you can find for the best flavor.
- Rhubarb: It is often easy to find rhubarb from neighbors during rhubarb season which runs late spring to early summer. Much like how cucumbers and tomatoes show up on porches, people always have excess rhubarb!
- Almond Extract: This is a great twist from using vanilla. It's a perfect match for a strawberry rhubarb crumble recipe. Try it in my carrot cake recipe!
- Cardamom: This plant is in the ginger family and lends itself to well to both savory and sweet dishes. It adds a lovely hint of flavor, especially paired with almond.
See recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements.
Substitutions & Variations
- No rhubarb? Use a different fruit or double the strawberries. Other fruits that can replace rhubarb in this summer fruit dessert are: apples, cranberries, raspberries or blackberries.
- Substitute vanilla ice cream, pistachio ice cream or whipped cream in place of brown butter frosting. Add the ice cream or whipped topping to the top of the strawberry rhubarb crumble recipe rather than the bottom.
- Try Strawberry Crunch Topping in place of the streusel topping. It's made with Golden Oreos and freeze dried strawberries.
This recipe has not been tested with other substitutions or variations. If you replace or add any ingredients, please let us know how it turned out in the comments below!
📖Recipe
Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble
Equipment
- 14 9 oz glass cups for individual servings
- 1 piping bag
Ingredients
Fruit Mixture
- 1½ lbs strawberries hulled and sliced
- 1½ lbs fresh rhubarb cut into ½ inch chunks
- 1½ cups granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon fresh orange juice
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt Diamond Crystal Brand
- 2 tsp almond extract
- ¼ teaspoon cardamom
Crumble Topping
- 8 tablespoon unsalted butter melted
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1¼ cup brown sugar
- ¾ cup all purpose flour
- 1 cup old fashioned oats
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt Diamond Crystal Brand
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting
- ½ cup brown butter cooled
- 8 oz cream cheese room temperature
- 2 cups powdered sugar sifted
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt Diamond Crystal Brand
- 1 tablespoon whole milk
Instructions
- Mix all fruit mixture ingredients together in a large pot over medium heat. Stir well and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes stirring occasionally with a rubber spatula and scraping the bottom of the pan to prevent burning.
- Pour fruit mixture into a 13x9 baking pan then place in the fridge to cool
Crumb Topping
- Preheat oven to 350°F and line a sheet tray with parchment paper
- Whisk vanilla into melted butter in a mixing bowl then add remaining crumb topping ingredients. Mix well until wet and crumbly then transfer mixture to parchment lined sheet tray and bake 30 minutes, stirring halfway through
Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting
- Brown the butter in a small sauce pot over low-medium heat. Butter will melt then begin to sputter. Keep an eye on it, swirling the pot occasionally. The butter will begin to brown and will be ready to remove from the pan when the sputtering quiets down and the butter is golden brown
- Transfer brown butter to a heat proof bowl, scraping all the brown bits out of the bottom of the pan with it. Place bowl in the fridge to cool
- Once brown butter is cooled, put it in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment with the softened cream cheese and mix together on low. Once mixed, turned the mixer to medium and beat for 1 minute
- Add sifted powdered sugar, vanilla, salt and milk. Mix together slowly then turn speed to medium-high and continue mixing for 3 minutes until light and fluffy
Building Cups
- Once fruit mixture is cooled build the cups by layering brown butter cream cheese frosting in the bottom, fruit crumble over the top of frosting then crumble on top. Serve immediately or chill and serve.
Notes
Nutrition
How To Make Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble
Step 1: Combine filling ingredients in a pot.
Step 2: Simmer until the fruit breaks down. Allow to cool.
Step 3: Combine crumble mixture in a mixing bowl.
Step 4: Spread on parchment and bake, stirring halfway through.
Step 5: Whip cream cheese frosting using a mixer.
Step 6: Assemble strawberry rhubarb crumble in jars in layers and serve.
Expert Baking Tips
- Use Kosher salt when baking. I have only tested the recipe with Kosher salt, and table salt does NOT substitute one-for-one. If using Morton's kosher salt, use 25% less salt than the recipe calls for. This goes for savory recipes too such as Strawberry Summer Salad.
- Transfer the strawberry rhubarb mixture into a new shallow container from the pot in order to cool it down more quickly. I use the freezer if I'm in a hurry.
- I find a 9oz cup or jar to work best for pretty layers in a reasonable serving size. Use plastic or glass cups or jars.
Recipe FAQs
The frosting can be made ahead and placed in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3 days in advance. You can also make the crumble in the morning and store in an airtight container once completely cool. Once filling is cool it can also be covered in the fridge for a couple days in advance. Do not assemble the cups until just before serving so that all layers retain their texture.
Let the butter work its magic over low-medium heat until it foams. Give the pot a swirl occasionally and wait for the butter to stop popping. The foam will then subside as the water evaporates from the butter. Watch closely at this point so that the butter doesn't burn!
Feel free to make this as a single large dessert instead of individual fruit crumble! You will be cooking the fruit in the oven rather than on the stove. Simply add the raw filling to a baking dish and top with the crumble mixture (also "raw") and then bake at 350°F for about 1 hour. The crumble topping will turn golden brown. You can then serve with ice cream or use the brown butter frosting as a topping.
The rich nuttiness pairs with the sweet and tart strawberry rhubarb mixture and it doesn't melt right away like ice cream! Using brown butter frosting allows you to be able to add a layer of smooth creaminess to the chunky fruit filling and crispy topping in a way that can be made ahead of time. Think of it as a cheesecake meets cobbler. My cheesecake obsession led me to this mashup!
More Recipes You'll Love
Have you tried this recipe? Share it with me! Tag @inkristaskitchen on Instagram & Facebook and leave a star⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐review below! Sign up for our Newsletter to follow along with new recipes & news!
Lora
One of the best desserts ever made! Everyone loved them. Perfect for any occasion! Will be making these all summer
Krista Stechman
Totally agree! Thank you!
Krista
My favorite dessert of the moment! Texture + flavor is one heck of a combo. My new go-to dessert of the summer! I also love the brown butter frosting because I can make these ahead and store them in the fridge rather having to scoop ice cream.