Plum Cobbler Bars Recipe (2024)

I made a completely lazy half version—it has been insanely hot all week and I did not feel like standing over a pot of jam—and it was excellent. This is one of the best crisp-crumble butter-sugar-flour-oat ratios I’ve ever made.The lazy version: Roughly chopped 2 lbs of plums; Make the crumb mixture; Press 2/3 of it into the bottom of a 9x13” pan; Spread the roughly chopped plums in an even layer; Sprinkle remaining crumb mixture on top; Bake at 350 for 45–55 minutes. IG: @sarahlovessalad

These were delicious!Some notes: I halved the recipe, cooked it in an 8x8 pan, and baked for 35 minutes. My plum jelly didn't need to be cooked down further after pureeing, and was the perfect consistency. Definitely don't puree the plums - the skins broke down completely. ENJOY!

Three changes:1) Used graham cracker crumbs in place of the whole wheat flour, which I was out of.2) Overcooking will make cornstarch break down and thin out, so I took the jam off heat after adding the cornstarch/sugar mix. It thickened up nicely in the oven.3) No "lift" is required, so I omitted baking powder.I wish we could post pictures here. (Yes, I realize we can post pictures on NYT social media, but I think photos would more helpful attached to the recipe.)

Don’t peel the plums—they have all the tart flavor! This works well with any flavor jam as well. Freezes well.

You don't have to peel the plums. I just made this with skin-on purple plums, turned out great.

This recipe is worth turning your oven on during a heat wave. The plum filling is divine; I worried it would be too sweet and it wasn't. And, the crumble is perfect. I found the directions for the filling to be spot-on, too. Prepared it the day before baking so it chilled for about 24 hours.

I reduced the whole thing by 1/3 because I didn’t have enough plums. The bars are very tasty, even though I think the plum jam could be less sweet. To compensate, I used a little less sugar in the crumble part. The crumble itself is very good, and before I added the crumbs on top, I mixed in a few drops of almond extract and some sliced almonds, which turned out to be an excellent decision.

I made the jam (purple Italian plums) without cornstarch or the extra sugar, and it had a nice level of sweetness. The streusel is quick to make, and I can imagine it with just about any fruit filling; I'll use it again. As another suggested, I added sliced almonds, which gave a nice texture; chopped walnuts would be good, too. Half a recipe made 8 generous servings, and the jam I didn't use (I made a full recipe of that) is a fantastic sauce for ice cream!

I'm certain the variability of responses relates directly to the variability among plums. Per suggestions below, I didn't make "jam bars" but rather did a cobbler. I roughly chopped a variety of plums/pluots and tossed them w brown sugar to taste (1/4 cup+). Then as directed, 2/3 crumb mixture as the base, then the fruit, then the remaining 1/3 crumb mix. This should work well with other stone fruits, and I'm looking forward to a winter version with apples and/or pears.

I went the really lazy route and made it with a jar of good jam. Came out great. I also substituted a little oats and flour for almond flour. Still delicious.

I made this recipe while being distracted in the kitchen and without thinking I left out the brown sugar. I knew something was wrong when it came out of the oven un-browned. When I tried it, to my surprise it wasn’t that bad. More of a shortbread cookie taste. None the less I made it again that evening. But knowing how sweet the plum jam was and how the crust tasted w/o sugar, I modified both sugars. Reducing each by 30 grams. Not much per serving but who is going to eat just one serving only?

I made as written and it was a big hit, and it made the house smell divine. However, even for my family of hearty eaters, the portion size was too large. Next time I make it, I will plan on feeding 20 rather than 12.

Made the ‘lazy’ version as per other comments and thought it was great. Super easy to put together.

I used a plum jam I'd already made and this was delicious!

I halved the recipe and used an 8x8 pan. I may use less vanilla next time, and maybe 1/2 tsp of lemon. Otherwise it was great! Excellent crumble and flavor.

This recipe, described as simple, took a lot of time/steps, though the end products was delicious. If I make it again, I will definitely make the jam a day or two ahead to break up the process.

❤️ I made this to put the recently harvested plums to use. Really liked the outcome however the 2/3 on the bottom was a lot so I reduced it to be 3/5 and that was ideal.

This recipe has a shocking amount of sugar(s) and butter and I think you can tweak it a bit. The next time I make this recipe, I’ll cut back on the butter and sugar by 1/3 each. I think the vanilla is unnecessary and the cornstarch clumped, like it does when added to warm or hot things. Omit the vanilla and perhaps dissolve the cornstarch (???) next time. Strongly recommend reducing/thickening the plum jam as much as possible and cool for a long time, even chilling the bars. Good recipe!

The jam was delicious up until I added the vanilla extract and then it killed the flavor, made it less fresh tasting and just weird. What’s the purpose of the vanilla? It ruined the dessert for me.

Reduced the sugar in the plum jam by 1/3. Halved the recipe and made these into bite sized servings by baking them in a cupcake tray. Checked them after 33 mins and wanted a darker crumb topping so let them go another 4 mins. Use silicone liners if you have them, otherwise jam sticks to paper liners. Putting the cupcakes in the fridge after they cool room temp helps with peeling paper liners off easier. Half the recipe made 16 small "bars". Don't blend the plum jam, keep some texture in!

Waaaay too sweet

Only needed 2.5 sticks of butter

I used almond flour in place of whole wheat flour and Gf All-Purpose flour in place of All-Purpose. I found jam to sweet so I added the zest of one lemon and the juice of a half lemon. Overall good recipe I would put less of the oat-flour mixture on top. 2.75 Out of 4 Stars

For sweet plums, the amount of sugar is overwhelming; cut back, taste, and add more in the cornstarch step if necessary. Whisk your cornstarch in to a small amount of jam first before adding into the pot to avoid lumps. I reduced the butter to 2.5 sticks without issues and avoided greasiness. Lemon juice, orange zest, and grated ginger did a good job of perking up my overly-sweet Italian prune plums.

Made the plum jam as directed and immediately regretted putting in dry cornstarch sugar. Despite rapid whisking, there are chunks of white cornstarch globs in my jam. Maybe they'll dissolve in the baking process, but next time I'm not adding dry cornstarch - mix it with a little water or juice, then add to the jam and reduce over a low burner. Ugh, I wish I'd followed my intuition on that directive!

Made these for a potluck and people gobbled them up. (The recipe makes way more than 12 servings; you can cut smaller bars because they’re pretty rich.) Substituted Earth Balance for the butter (and omitted the salt to compensate for the salt in the Earth Balance) to make them dairy-free, which worked beautifully. Next time I will probably reduce the sugar and vanilla in the plum jam just a bit to let the plum flavor and tartness shine through, but they were excellent as-is.

Simply divine.

What is a tip to avoiding lumps from the cornstarch in the jam?

Have made this with everything - peaches, plums, nectarines, blueberries, even in the middle of winter with canned peaches. It all works. As a few people have said, I don't blend all of the filling. I leave about half of it in pieces for more texture. It's a great way to use fruit that is bruised, or a bit past prime ripeness.

Incredible! Going to be my summer fruit mainstay. Don't press too hard to make the bottom layer of crust or it will get a little too comfortable in the dish and be difficult to get out. Next time I will not blend the filling, I think it might be nice with some chunks of fruit in the middle!