Blueberry Jam Bars

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Why you’ll love these blueberry jam bars

• Vegan
• Gluten free
• Refined sugar free
• No butter or oils
• Chia seeds add nutritional density – think calcium and fibre
• The flavor reminds me of a warm stack of blueberry pancakes with maple syrup
• Only 8 ingredients

Ingredients to make blueberry jam bars

Blueberries: the main ingredient and the most vibrant by far – I used frozen blueberries for increased nutrient availability, a thicker, sweeter jam, and because frozen is the more cost-effective choice. 

Oat flour: store bought or homemade oat flour forms the base of the crust. It gives a cozy, familiar flavor to ground and balance the recipe. Be sure to purchase certified gluten-free oat flour if you have a serious allergy.

Almond flour: almond meal will work just fine here, too. I recommend using bob’s red mill superfine almond flour in most of my recipes – you can use this link to purchase. 

Maple syrup: to sweeten and bind the crust of these blueberry jam bars. Maple syrup keeps this recipe refined sugar free and contributes a warming, sunday morning pancake type of flavor.

Chia seeds: these are actually the binding agent in the blueberry jam layer. Instead of using a super refined starch, we’ll lean on whole, unprocessed chia seeds to transform the blueberries into a thick, nutrient-dense jam. 

Vanilla extract: adds flavor and interest to the crust layer – if you’re new to my recipes, you should know that I always make sure my crusts can are delicious on their own!

Salt: to balance all the sweetness, we’re throwing a touch of salt into the crust.

Baking powder: this leavening agent comes prepped with an acidic compound to help create small bubbles and lift the crust while it bakes.

How to make blueberry jam bars

Step 1: prep the jam on the stovetop

Step 2: mix the crust ingredients together

Step 3: assemble the crust layer, then top with blueberry jam

Step 4: bake for 20 minutes

Step 5: chill to set – at least 4 hours in a freezer or 8 hours in the refrigerator

Substitutions

Frozen blueberries

While I personally love this recipe with blueberries, a few other frozen fruits would work just as well. If you don’t have or don’t like blueberries, I recommend trying raspberries, strawberries, or blackberries. Using frozen fruit is essential, regardless which berry you choose! The frozen fruits have weaker cell walls once defrosted, meaning they will release a significant amount of juice compared to their fresh counterparts.

Store bought jam

There is a homemade jam recipe built into this blueberry jam bar recipe, but you can always skip this step and use jarred jam instead. Other fruit flavors will work with exception of orange marmalade, which would be much too bitter for this recipe. Since this recipe is refined sugar free, just know that store bought jam will produce a much sweeter dessert.

Almond flour

To make this recipe allergen-friendly, you can opt for a homemade sunflower seed flour to replace the almond flour in this recipe. Just pulse your sunflower seeds in a food processor until they resemble a fine flour. I do not recommend using flour or oats to replace the almonds – we need the fat and moisture to bind the crust and create a cookie-like texture.

Maple syrup

If you are not strictly vegan, honey may be substituted for the maple syrup in this recipe. That said, I strongly prefer the maple flavor as a complement to the jammy blueberries – together, these flavors make this recipe shockingly reminiscent to a stack of blueberry pancakes! Yum!

FAQs

Recipe Card

Blueberry Jam Bars

These healthy blueberry jam bars have a thick, oatmeal almond crust topped with a dense, jammy layer of bright blueberries. Made without any oils, refined sugars, coconut, gluten, or animal products.

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Prep Time 25 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Chill time 5 hours hrs

Course Breakfast, Dessert, Snack

Cuisine American, British

Servings 16 bars

Calories 260 kcal

Equipment

• 1 9×9 baking pan see above post for link to pan with removable bottom

Ingredients

  

Crust

• 2 ¼ cups oat flour
• ⅓ cup almond flour
• ¾ tsp salt
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ½ cup maple syrup
• 1 tsp vanilla

Blueberry Jam

• 5 cups frozen blueberries
• 2 tbsp chia seeds

Instructions

 

Blueberry Jam

• Start by adding 5 cups of frozen blueberries to a medium pot on the stove.
• Set the heat to a simmer to get the juices to release. This will take about 5 – 10 minutes. Keep an eye on the pot, stirring occassionally.
• When the blueberries start to release their juices, turn the heat to medium, stirring frequently to prevent any from burning on the bottom of the pot. Hold at medium for another 5 minutes.
• Using a fork or the back of a slotted spoon, roughly mash the blueberries while they cook.
• Add the chia seeds and bring the jam to a boil. Hold at a boil for 20-30 seconds, then cut off the heat.

The crust

• Preheat the oven to 350℉.
• Add the oat flour, almond flour, salt, and baking soda to a large bowl and whisk to combine.
• Measure the maple syrup and add the vanilla extract to the syrup, then dump both into the dry ingredients. Stir to incorporate.
• Transfer the crust to a 9×9 pan – see blog post for my favorite with a removable bottom. Be sure to line the pan with parchment paper if not using one with a removable bottom.
• Press the crust firmly into one layer over the bottom of the baking pan. Use a flat-bottomed glass or bowl to evenly distribute.
• Carefully pour the blueberry jam over the crust.
• Bake the blueberry jam bars at 350℉ for ~20 minutes or until the jam starts to bubble and pull away from the sides of the pan.
• Cool the bars in the fridge for at least 6 hours before slicing. The jam will thicken as it cools. To speed the process, cover and chill in the freezer for 2-3 hours instead.

Keyword almond, bars, blueberries, blueberry, desserts, fruit sweetened, gluten free, maple syrup, no added sugar, no coconut, oats

Did you try this recipe? Let us know how it went in the comments below!