These peach pie crumb bars combine everything we love about a classic homemade peach crumble pie—juicy cinnamon-spiced peaches, buttery crust, and a crumbly topping—but in a much simpler, easier-to-serve form.
I originally published this recipe in 2013 and have since added new photos and additional success tips. My team and I also retested the recipe and made a few small tweaks so they’re better than ever!
These peach pie crumb bars combine several of the best things about summer baking: fresh seasonal peaches, simple ingredients, and a dessert that travels beautifully to cookouts, picnics, and other gatherings.
They’re also incredibly easy to make! There’s no pie dough rolling, crimping, or fussing. Just press the crust into the pan, pile on the peach filling, sprinkle with crumble topping, and bake.
If you love my blueberry pie bars or cherry pie bars, you’ll love this peach version too!
Why You’ll Love These Peach Pie Bars
- Easier than making a traditional peach pie
- Buttery brown sugar oat crust and crumble topping
- Packed with juicy fresh peaches
- Soft, tender texture with crisp crumbly edges
- No special equipment required
- Perfect for summer parties, barbecues, and potlucks
- Make-ahead and freezer-friendly
Layers of Peachy Perfection
These peach pie crumb bars may look impressive, but each layer is wonderfully simple.
Crust: The crust is buttery, soft, and sturdy enough to support the juicy peach filling. It comes together with flour, oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, and cold butter. Even better? The same mixture doubles as the crumble topping, which means fewer ingredients (and fewer dishes!).
Fresh Peach Pie Filling: Ripe summer peaches are the star of this recipe, bringing plenty of natural sweetness and flavor. As the bars bake, the peach juices mingle with the crust underneath, creating an incredibly tender texture that practically melts in your mouth.
Crumble Topping: Before baking, sprinkle the reserved crumble mixture over the peach layer. I often add sliced almonds for extra texture and flavor, but they’re completely optional. Chopped pecans or walnuts would work too! The crumble bakes up golden, buttery, and lightly crisp on top—providing the perfect contrast to the soft peach filling.
Vanilla Icing: A drizzle of simple vanilla icing makes these bars look and taste like they came from a bakery display case. It’s only 3 ingredients and takes barely any time to make. You’ll love it on peach streusel muffins, too!
Key Ingredients for Peach Pie Bars
- Peaches: Fresh peaches are the star of the show. Look for ripe peaches that give slightly when gently pressed. They should smell fragrant and sweet. You can peel them or leave the skins on if preferred. I usually peel them for the softest texture.
- Sugar: You need granulated sugar for sweetening the peach filling, and brown sugar for the crust/topping. Brown sugar adds moisture and a subtle caramel flavor that pairs beautifully with peaches.
- Egg: Gives the filling a slightly custard-y texture and helps it to set. Trust me on this!
- Flour: All-purpose flour provides the structure.
- Oats: Rolled oats create a hearty, buttery crumble texture.
- Cinnamon: This warm spice pairs beautifully with peaches, without overpowering their natural flavor.
- Cold Butter: Cold butter is essential for creating those irresistible crumbly pockets throughout the crust and topping.
- Vanilla + Almond Extracts: For enhancing the peach flavor.
- Lemon Zest: To brighten up the peach flavor.
- Salt: To enhance and balance all the flavors.
Start by Making the Crust & Topping
One mixture does double duty for the crust and topping. You can make it in a food processor or simply use a mixing bowl, a whisk, and a pastry cutter. Pulse or cut cubes of very cold butter into the dry ingredients until you have pea-sized crumbles.
Remove a cup of the mixture and transfer it to another bowl. Add another Tablespoon of oats—and if you’d like, a handful of sliced almonds—to the smaller bowl, and set it aside until you’re ready for the topping.
Pour the remaining mixture (in the food processor or larger bowl) into a lined baking pan and press it down to make a crust:
Success Tip: Pre-Bake the Crust
Don’t skip the pre-bake! Giving the crust a head start helps it stay sturdy beneath the juicy peach filling and ensures the finished bars hold their shape when sliced.
Fresh Peach Filling
While the crust is in the oven, make the peach filling.
There’s no pre-cooking step needed here. Simply whisk together the ingredients, then fold in the chopped peaches. Easy peachy!
Make the peach filling immediately before using; if you let the filling sit for too long, the peaches will begin to break down and the filling will become too liquid-y.
Spread the peach filling over the warm crust, then sprinkle on the crumble topping, and bake. Note that you’ll increase the oven temperature from 350°F (177°C) to 375°F (191°C) between pre-baking the crust and baking the layered peach pie bars.
The Best Texture Comes After Chilling
As tempting as it is to dig in immediately, these peach pie crumb bars slice much more cleanly after they’ve cooled completely. Let them cool at room temperature, then refrigerate for around 2 hours.
Why? The juicy filling sets up, so they’re much easier to cut into neat squares.
When you’re ready to serve, lift the bars out of the pan using the parchment paper lining, cut into squares, and drizzle with vanilla icing.
Yes. If fresh peaches aren’t available, frozen peaches work well. Thaw them completely and blot away excess moisture before using. We do not recommend using canned peaches.
I don’t recommend using a 9-inch square pan for this recipe because it’s a little too large and the bars will turn out quite thin. For best results, use an 8-inch square baking pan. If that’s not available, a 9-inch round cake pan works well. After chilling, simply slice the bars into wedges instead of squares.
Yes, you can double this recipe to make a larger batch of peach pie crumb bars. The crust pre-bake time and temperature remain the same, but the total bake time increases. See detailed recipe Note below.
When peach season arrives, most of us immediately think of peach cobbler, peach crisp, and classic peach pie. These peach pie crumb bars deserve a place right alongside those favorites.
With their buttery oat crumble, juicy peach filling, and easy-to-serve bar format, they’re the perfect handheld dessert for summer gatherings, or simply making the most of peach season!
Description
These peach pie crumb bars combine juicy fresh peaches, a buttery brown sugar oat crust, crumbly streusel topping, and sweet vanilla icing. Easier than peach pie and perfect for summer gatherings, potlucks, and peach season baking.
Crust & Topping
Peach Filling
Vanilla Icing
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Line an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on all sides to easily lift the bars out of the pan (makes cutting much easier). Set aside.
- Make the crust/topping: In the bowl of a food processor (or a large bowl), combine the flour, 1/2 cup of the oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt and pulse or whisk to combine. Add the cold cubed butter and pulse the food processor or cut in with a pastry cutter until you have coarse, pea-sized crumbs. Transfer 1 cup (about 125g) of the mixture to a small bowl and mix in the remaining 1 Tbsp oats and sliced almonds (if using). This will be the topping; set aside until needed in step 5.
- Press the remaining crust mixture into an even layer in the prepared baking pan. Bake the crust for 15 minutes; then, remove the crust from the oven and increase the oven temperature to 375°F (191°C).
- Make the peach filling immediately before using; if you let the filling sit for too long, the peaches will begin to break down and the filling will become too liquid-y. In a large bowl, whisk together the egg, sugar, flour, vanilla, almond extract, and lemon zest until combined. Fold in the peaches.
- Pour the filling over the hot crust. Sprinkle the reserved topping mixture evenly over the top.
- Bake for 35–40 minutes or until lightly browned on top. Allow to cool in the pan on a cooling rack for 1 hour, then transfer to the refrigerator and chill for at least 2 hours or up to 2 days. (Cover tightly if chilling longer than a few hours.)
- Once chilled, lift the bars out of the pan using the overhang on the sides and cut into squares. For neat squares, use a very sharp knife and wipe it clean with a paper towel after each cut.
- Make the vanilla icing: In a small bowl or liquid measuring cup, whisk together the confectioners’ sugar, cream/milk, and vanilla until smooth and pourable. Drizzle over peach pie bars.
- Store leftover peach pie bars tightly covered in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: Prepare the bars up to 2 days in advance and store covered tightly in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Bars can be frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before serving.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 8-inch Square Baking Pan | Glass Mixing Bowls | Food Processor or Pastry Cutter | Whisk | Citrus Zester | Vanilla Bean Paste | Cooling Rack
- Can I Use a 9-Inch Square Pan? I don’t recommend it; it’s a little too large and the bars will be quite thin.
- Double Batch: This recipe can be doubled and baked in a 9×13-inch pan. The crust pre-bake time and temperature remain the same. Increase the oven temperature to 375°F (191°C) as directed in step 3. In step 6, increase the bake time to about 50 minutes, or until the topping is lightly browned and the filling appears set. Be sure to chill the bars for at least 2 hours in the refrigerator before slicing.
- Can I Use Frozen Peaches? Yes. Thaw completely and pat dry before using. We do not recommend using canned peaches.
- Updated in 2026: Originally published in 2013, this longtime favorite received a few small improvements after years of baking and retesting. We added a touch of almond extract and fresh lemon zest to brighten and enhance the peach flavor, and slightly increased the amounts of peaches (from 2 cups) and flour (from 1 Tbsp) for a more substantial filling. The result is an even more flavorful, peach-packed bar while keeping everything readers have loved about this recipe for years.
