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Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp

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By Jenn Segal
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Gorgeous red fruit bubbling away beneath a crunchy oat streusel topping — this strawberry rhubarb crisp is one of the easiest and best desserts I know.

how to make rhubarb crisp

Perfect for a spring or early summer, this strawberry rhubarb crisp is one of the easiest and best desserts I know. It’s wonderful served warm from the oven with sweetened whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream. But if you happen to have leftovers, they’re delicious with your morning coffee, too. Heads up: while fruit desserts like this one tend to be flexible, be sure to keep the ratio of rhubarb to strawberries the same. As tempting as it might be to add extra strawberries, doing so can lead to a too-juicy “fruit soup” situation, since strawberries release a ton of juice. For more seasonal fruit crisp variations, see my summer peach crisp and autumn apple crisp.

Table of Contents

“I served it to guests at a dinner party and everyone agreed it was the best crisp any one of us had ever tried.”

Heather

What You’ll Need To Make Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp

Crisp ingredients including corn starch, vanilla, and oats.

If you’ve never cooked with rhubarb, now is the time to start! Technically, it’s a vegetable but you treat it like fruit. It’s very tart but when you add a little sugar and cook it down, it becomes deliciously sweet, like berries. To prepare it for this recipe, trim the leaves (they should not be eaten) and rough ends and wash the stalks, then cut them into 1/2-inch pieces.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Bowl of fruit with sugar and cornstarch.

Quarter the strawberries and combine them with the rhubarb, sugar, cornstarch and vanilla. Stir until the fruit is evenly coated with the sugar mixture, and the sugar mixture is no longer white.

Fruit coated with a sugar mixture.

Transfer the fruit mixture to a 2-quart baking dish (no need to butter it) and set aside while you prepare the topping.

Baking dish full of rhubarbs and strawberries.

In the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour, brown sugar, granulated sugar and salt.

Dry ingredients in a food processor.

Process until well combined, about 30 seconds. Add the cold butter.

Butter cut onto dry ingredients in a food processor.

Pulse until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs, with a few pea-sized clumps of butter within.

Mixture resembling coarse crumbs in a food processor.

Transfer to a medium bowl and stir in the oats and chopped pecans.

Oats, pecans, and processed mixture in a bowl.

Stir to combine.

Spoon mixing oats, nuts, and more in a bowl.

Spoon the topping evenly over the fruit without packing it down.

Fruit mixture topped with crisp topping in a baking dish.

Bake for 45-55 minutes, until the fruit is bubbling around the edges and the topping is golden brown. Cool for 20 minutes before serving, then spoon into shallow bowls and serve with vanilla ice cream.

Baked strawberry rhubarb crisp in a blue dish.

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Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp

Metric Cup Measures
By Jenn Segal

Gorgeous red fruit bubbling away beneath a crunchy oat streusel topping — this strawberry rhubarb crisp is one of the easiest and best desserts I know.

Servings: 6-8
Prep Time: 20 Minutes
Cook Time: 50 Minutes
Total Time: 1 Hour 10 Minutes

Ingredients

For the Filling

  • 1 pound rhubarb stalks, trimmed and sliced ½-inch thick (about 4 cups)
  • ½ pound strawberries, hulled and quartered (about 2 cups)
  • ½ cup granulated sugar
  • 1½ tablespoons cornstarch
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the Topping

  • ¾ cup all-purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled-off with a knife
  • ½ cup packed light brown sugar
  • 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch cubes
  • ¾ cup old fashioned rolled oats
  • ½ cup chopped pecans
  • Lightly sweetened whipped cream or vanilla ice cream, for serving (optional)

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.

For the Filling

  1. In a large bowl, combine the rhubarb, strawberries, sugar, cornstarch, and vanilla. Stir until the fruit is evenly coated with the sugar mixture, and the sugar mixture is no longer white.
  2. Transfer the fruit mixture to a 2-quart or 8-inch baking dish (no need to butter it) and set aside while you prepare the topping.

For the Topping

  1. In the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour, brown sugar, granulated sugar and salt. Process until well combined, about 30 seconds. Add the cold butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs, with a few pea-sized clumps of butter within. Transfer to a medium bowl and stir in the oats and chopped pecans.
  2. Spoon the topping evenly over the fruit without packing down. Bake for 45-55 minutes, until the fruit is bubbling around the edges and the topping is golden brown. Cool for 20 minutes before serving. Spoon into shallow bowls and serve with vanilla ice cream.
  3. Note: If your baking dish is shallow, place it on top of a foil-lined sheet pan to catch any spills that might bubble over the edges.
  4. Note: Don't be tempted to increase the strawberries in the recipe, or you'll end up with fruit soup (they release a lot of juice).
  5. Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The crisp can be frozen tightly covered for up to 3 months. Before serving, reheat it, uncovered, in a 300°F oven until heated through and crisp on top.

Nutrition Information

Powered by Edamam

  • Per serving (8 servings)
  • Calories: 332
  • Fat: 14g
  • Saturated fat: 6g
  • Carbohydrates: 49g
  • Sugar: 32g
  • Fiber: 3g
  • Protein: 4g
  • Sodium: 81mg
  • Cholesterol: 23mg
Nutritional Data Disclaimer

This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.

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Comments

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  • This looks so good !! I can’t wait to try this. I have been looking for something like this for a very long time ! Thanks.

  • This is a five star recipe if ever there was
    one

  • I made this recipe two times in the spring when the rhubarb first came in, it was spectacular. The pecans and oats together give it such a rich taste and it has just enough rhubarb in it not to be too sweet.
    Every time I’ve made it I come home with a clean casserole dish.

  • Strawberry rhubarb, my husband’s favorite and this recipe doesn’t disappoint ! Just the right tang and the crisp topping is the best. Very versatile, I’ve used it with other fruits in season – apples, peaches, plums. SO good!

  • You did not state size of pan, I am guessing 8×8 is this correct

    • Hi Grace, Yes a 2-quart pan is equivalent to an 8-inch pan. I will update the recipe — thank you!

  • Can this be frozen and still be just as tasty?

    • Hi Paul, I do think it will freeze well; just be sure to reheat and crisp up again.

  • Hi Jenn,
    I am looking for a crumble for 16 -20 people. I bought peaches & blueberries, could I use this recipe with the fruit I have now?

    Thanks,
    Mary

    • Hi Mary, Yes, I do think that would work.

  • I made the strawberry-rhubarb crisp for Easter. It was a hit! I didn’t have oats so I used muesli instead, and it worked out great! Thank you so much for the great recipe!

  • Jenn,
    I thought you would like to know that your recipe was a big hit, was shared with my cooking buddies, and brought a little joy into the lives of families going through a rough time. I made your Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp with my cooking Meetup group for 10 guests at the local Ronald McDonald House last night. It was perfect for this occasion because it was simple to prepare and made the kitchen smell amazing! We 4 cooks had to have a sample (it would be negligent to serve without tasting, right?) It’s a miracle that there was any left for the guests! Next time I will know to double or triple the recipe!

    • Thank you, Linda. This review made me so happy. I am glad it was enjoyed…how wonderful of you to cook for Ronald McDonald House.

  • Hi Jenn….

    I want to make this recipe – checked my rhubarb patch – it’s coming – one more month here. But I have rhubarb in the freezer and it will be perfect for this recipe.

    Now, Mom used to make this with rhubarb only and so I want to make this without the strawberry.

    I assume that it will be 1 1/2 pounds of rhubarb and so – how many cups would 1 pound be????

    Shar
    Streetsville, Ontario
    P.S.: We used to eat first Rhubarb pick and Mom would stewed it down and then served with toast w/butter for breakfast – as a spring tonic. This was always part of spring for the family and for sure a treat.

    • Hi Sharon, Yes, it would be 1-1/2 cups which I believe is about 5-6 cups. You might also want to cut the corn starch back to 1 tablespoon.

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