Peaches are one of my favorite summer fruits. Actually, I don’t think I can play favorites. There are so many glorious gems to chose from this time of year… raspberries, strawberries, blueberries, pineapple – I love them all!!
These fruity/creamy bars are nothing short of amazing. Four layers to love: buttery, brown sugar oat crust, creamy & juicy peach filling, pecan/cinnamon crumble, and an easy vanilla icing to finish it all off. The peach filling leaves each bite ultra moist and the crumble on top maintains a slight crunch. These bars are a texture lover’s dream!
The peachy filling is made from peaches, egg, flour, and sugar. The egg and flour create a thick creamy sauce to envelope the diced peaches inside. I adore the peach filling, but the crust and crumble might just be the stars of the show. They’re both made from the same dough, which makes things easy and convenient. I try to dirty as little bowls as possible when I can. I know you feel me there!
The crust/crumble = made from 5 simple ingredients. Probably things you have in your kitchen right now. Oats, flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and butter. You’re going to cut the cold butter into the other ingredients. I recommend using a pastry cutter. It makes things so much easier. Cut the cold butter in until the mixture is crumbly. Reserve 3/4 cup of the oat mixture for the topping, to which you’ll add pecans. Nuts are optional, so you can definitely leave them out! The rest of the oat mixture will be pressed into your pan for the crust.
This is what the coarse crumbs of the oat mixture will look like:
Pre-bake the crust, then pour the creamy peach filling over the crust. What you will LOVE most about these bars is that the juicy filling seeps into the crust as it bakes, making the bars unbelievably moist. The tender, brown sugary crust will melt in your mouth.
The bars take about 30 minutes in the oven. Your kitchen will smell like a cross between cinnamon rolls and peach pie. Two of my favorite things in one. Allow the bars to cool before cutting and drizzling with the vanilla icing. I halved my original vanilla icing recipe since we don’t need as much. It’s made from 3 simple ingredients: heavy cream (or milk), confectioners’ sugar, and vanilla extract.
Drizzle the icing on top and prepare to be amazed. 😉
I think I found my new favorite dessert. Definitely one of the best ways to enjoy all of these fresh summer peaches! What’s your favorite way to enjoy peaches? ♥
More peachy desserts to try: peach Bundt cake (with an incredible brown butter icing), peach streusel muffins, peach cobbler, peach crumble pie, peach crisp, strawberry peach galette, and peach quick bread.
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Peaches ‘n’ Cream Bars
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Total Time: 3 hours, 30 minutes
- Yield: 12 bars
- Category: Bars
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Take advantage of summer’s fresh peaches with these easy bars. A four layered bar with a brown sugar and oat crust, topped with a creamy peach filling, pecan streusel, and finished off with luscious vanilla icing.
Ingredients
Crust & Topping
- 1 cup (125g) all-purpose flour (spoon & leveled)
- 1/2 cup (43g) old-fashioned whole rolled oats (or quick oats)
- 1/3 cup (67g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 10 Tablespoons (150g) unsalted butter, cold and cubed
- optional: 1/2 cup (70g) chopped pecans
Peach Filling
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 1 Tablespoon (8g) all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 medium peaches, peeled and chopped (about 1.5 cups)
Vanilla Icing
- 1/2 cup (60g) confectioners’ sugar
- 1 Tablespoon (15ml) milk
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C) degrees. Line the bottom and sides of an 8 or 9-inch square baking pan with aluminum foil or parchment, leaving an overhang on all sides to easily lift the bars out of the pan before cutting. Spray with nonstick spray or grease with butter. Set aside.
- Make the crust/topping: In a large bowl, whisk the flour, oats, brown sugar, and cinnamon together until combined. Cut in the cold butter using a pastry blender or two forks until it reaches coarse, pea-sized crumbs. See photo above. Remove 3/4 cup of the mixture, put in a small bowl and mix with pecans. This will be set aside for the topping.
- Evenly press the remaining oat mixture into the bottom of the prepared baking pan. Bake for 15 minutes as you prepare the filling.
- Make the filling: Whisk the egg and sugar together until smooth and creamy. Add the flour and salt. Whisk until combined. Fold in the peaches. Remove crust from the oven after 15 minutes and pour the filling over hot crust. Sprinkle with reserved oat/pecan mixture.
- Bake for 30-32 minutes or until golden brown on top. Allow to cool in the pan on a wire rack for 30 minutes. Transfer to the refrigerator and allow to chill for 2 hours.
- Once chilled, lift the foil out of the pan using the overhang on the sides and cut into squares. For neat squares, I use a very sharp knife and wipe it clean with a paper towel after each cut.
- Make the vanilla icing: Using a fork or spoon, whisk/stir the confectioners’ sugar, cream, and vanilla extract together until smooth. Add another Tablespoon of milk to thin out if needed. Drizzle over each square. Leftovers keep well in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: Prepare the bars 1-3 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.
- Double Batch: Recipe can easily be doubled to fit in a 9×13 pan, baking time will increase to 35 minutes.
Keywords: peaches n cream bars, peach streusel bars
Delicious and a hit at the 4th of July Party. Thank you!
Hi is there any possibility of substituting the butter for coconut oil or something similar? One of my little girls is dairy intolerant… Makes baking quite frustrating at times!
Hi Sanna! Coconut oil is a great dairy free substitute for the butter in this recipe.
I made a double batch of these for a bbq last night. No nuts as allergies were a concern. The platter was emptied to rave reviews.
I came across this recipe as I was searching for something different to try with a few leftover peaches. These bars are so easy and delicious! I doubled the recipe for a 9×13 pan but did not double the glaze recipe since I didn’t want them to be overly sweet. Perfect! This recipe is definitely a keeper!
These look great, Sally! The peaches around here have been hit or miss, unfortunately. If I were to use frozen peaches, would you recommend thawing and draining first to avoid a soggy bottom? Or just use them frozen? I feel like there are many different opinions out there regarding frozen fruit and to thaw or not thaw 😉 I’m curious to know yours.
Thanks!
Erin
Use them frozen 🙂
Wow, Sally. I understand why you have a baking addition, with recipes like this. I added grated nutmeg and fresh ginger to the filling, and didn’t even do the glaze, and these were outstanding! I also used 1/2 the amount of sugar in the filling so the peaches would keep their zing. For me 35 minutes for the final baking time was perfect in a stoneware pan. I am also eager to try this with blueberries or apples, but it would be hard to top the peaches.
These were soo yummy! I only had roasted/salted pistachios lying around instead of pecans, which actually ended up working perfectly and adding a hint of saltiness to the topping. The topping never ended up getting as crispy as I usually like, but that might be because I used very juicy peaches. It was still delicious 🙂
Hi,
I am doubling this recipe. How long should I cook the crust? 15 minutes or a little longer? What should it look like, lightly browned?
Yes, lightly browned– and I would say at least 20 minutes.
I made these this weekend (as I LOVE any and everything peach). They are AMAZING!! This is definitely a keeper!! Thank you!
These bars are fantastic! Turned out like the pictures too! Thanks for sharing!
Hey,could i use a 9×9 cake pan or is that too big?
That size pan will be just fine for these.
These sound delicious, any recommendations for good spices to add into the filling? Thanks!
I always love cinnamon and nutmeg with peaches.
I made these tonight. They are supposed to still be cooling in the fridge but I couldn’t wait. I made the glaze (which needed more than 2 teaspoons of the heavy cream) and spread it on the not yet completely chilled bars then I cut a piece and ate it with a spoon. They should be called “Good luck waiting for them to cool Peaches and Cream Bars”. Delicious. I’m moving the recipe straight into my “favorite recipes” board on Pinterest.
Hi Sally, Do you think I could sub in white peaches instead? I have 2 ripening on my counter. My step-daughter has been asking me to make more bars ever since I made your raspberry streusel bars.
Yes, definitely!
I just made these, and they look amazing! Haven’t tried them yet. I didn’t peel the peaches (didn’t feel like it) and I added 2 T. rum to the peach mixture! YUM!
I’m adding my vote to this amazing recipe. Of course we’re swimming in peaches and this was the most delicious way I’ve ever used them. I handed most of it off to neighbors tonight as I didn’t feel safe having this in the house. This will be part of a regular rotation now. Thank you very much.
These turned out just incredible! My husband and I had plans to share, but after one bite we greedily agreed that we would keep the whole batch. I absolutely will be making these scrumptious bars again. Thank you for another amazing recipe, I adore your blog and make as many of your recipes as my waistline will allow 😉
Hi Sally!
Thank you for sharing this post. I’ve made it 3 times over the summer and it’s been such a great hit with my friends and family! I’ve substituted the pecans with macadamias which add to the already creamy texture and also used melted white chocolate instead of a vanilla glaze (’cause I’m lazy like that 😉 ).
Just a question – is it alright if I substitute the peaches with mangoes? Peaches are getting crazy expensive in Australia right now!
Thanks!
Yvonne xoxo
Hi Yvonne– yes, mangoes would be delicious! thanks so much for reporting back. I love these bars as well.
I just put yet another batch of these bars in the oven and thought I’d thank you for posting the recipe. I’ve made several of your desserts and liked them all, but these peach bars are a serious contender for my favorite treat of all time. This has become one of my go-to recipes for feeding summer guests, and the bars always get an enthusiastic reception (I’ve been asked for the link to the recipe more than once). You are a baking genius.
These are AMAZING! Made them this afternoon, so they would be ready for supper. Thank you for having a baking addiction;-)
can I use apples?
Yep!
I know this comment is long overdue, but I just wanted to let you know that I made these, and wow. Just wow. These were a huge hit with all my friends. Thanks so much for all the awesome recipes!
Made these today and LOVED them! They turned out perfectly <3. I substituted 6 oz of cinnamon applesauce for the egg, and used brown sugar in the filling instead of white sugar (I adore the rich taste of brown sugar). They were super easy to make and seriously yummy.
I made these for a birthday celebration at work last week and everyone LOVED them. They were almost gone before I even got to try one!
These look delish! If doubling it and using a 9×13 pan, should I still pre-bake the crust just for the 15 minutes and then bake the filling in for the 35? Planning on making these for a party next week!
Thank you!
Hi Rosie! Yes, still prebake the crust for 15 minutes. I believe the bars would only take 35 minutes – maybe 40, Just keep your eye on them and remove them when they begin to brown. Enjoy!
Sally, I just wanted to let you know that I tried them today and they were just as good as they looked… They were AMAZING!!! Thanks so much for yet another amazingly delicious recipe! 😀
I made these yesterday after a trip to the farmer’s market for some fresh summer peaches and they were delicious!! Huge hit in the office this morning too and since they’re made with fruit I totally convinced everyone they were healthy enough for breakfast 🙂 thanks for the recipe!
We had a couple of peaches that were nearing the end of their prime so I whipped up these bars. Hubby LOVED them! Thanks so much!
I made these today for a bbq and they were a total hit!!!! So delicious and creamy. I love how the filling does not overwhelm the peaches and how you get a burst of peach in every bite. I doubled it and put it in the 9 by 13 inch pan and they were perfect. I used closer to 3 1/2 cups of peaches- it was not too much for the filling. Thanks for another wonderful recipe! I can’t wait for your cookbook:)))