Creating this delightful strawberry rhubarb crisp requires just a handful of straightforward, pantry-friendly ingredients. The beauty of this recipe lies in its simplicity, allowing the fresh, seasonal flavors of the fruit to truly shine through in every bite. Here’s a closer look at what you’ll need to gather:

• Strawberries: Opt for fresh, ripe strawberries when they are in season for the best flavor. After hulling them, quartering ensures they cook down evenly and blend beautifully with the rhubarb. A handy strawberry huller can make prep remarkably quick and easy, saving you time and effort in the kitchen.
• Rhubarb: You’ll need approximately 1 pound of fresh rhubarb stalks. As mentioned, seek out firm, brightly colored stalks, ideally with a good amount of red for visual appeal, though green stalks are just as delicious. Uniformly slicing them into ½-inch pieces helps them soften consistently during baking.
• Granulated Sugar: This recipe uses a moderate amount of granulated sugar to complement the natural sweetness of the strawberries and temper the rhubarb’s tartness. I personally prefer a less-sweet filling, so I start with just 3 tablespoons, allowing the fruit’s natural flavors to be prominent. You can easily adjust this quantity based on the tartness of your rhubarb and your personal preference for sweetness.
• All-Purpose Flour: A small amount of all-purpose flour is key to achieving that perfect jammy consistency in the fruit filling. It works as a thickening agent, ensuring the fruit juices don’t become too watery and instead transform into a luscious, bubbling sauce as the crisp bakes.
• Butter: Butter is essential for both aspects of this crisp. A little is used to generously grease your baking dish, preventing sticking and promoting a lovely crust. More importantly, melted butter forms the foundation of our irresistible, buttery oat topping, binding all the dry ingredients together.
• Vanilla Extract: For an authentic and rich flavor, always use pure vanilla extract. If you’re feeling ambitious, try making your own homemade vanilla extract for an unparalleled aroma and depth in your dessert. 
• Topping Ingredients: This is where the “crisp” in strawberry rhubarb crisp comes from! You’ll need hearty old-fashioned oats (also known as rolled oats), which provide a wonderful chewy texture. All-purpose flour helps bind the topping and contributes to its crispness. Light brown sugar adds a lovely molasses note and moisture, while a dash of cinnamon and a pinch of salt enhance the overall warmth and balance of flavors. Finally, melted butter brings all these dry ingredients together, forming a chunky streusel that bakes into a perfectly crisp yet tender golden-brown topping.

For precise measurements and full ingredient quantities, please refer to the detailed recipe card below.

This classic, old-fashioned crisp is wonderfully straightforward to prepare, requiring no complex techniques or delicate pie crusts. Its rustic charm and ease of assembly make it a perfect dessert for any home baker. Follow these simple steps to create a truly irresistible strawberry rhubarb crisp:

1. Prepare your baking dish. Begin by preheating your oven to 350°F (175°C). While the oven heats, generously grease a 10-inch oven-safe skillet or a deep-dish pie plate with unsalted butter. Greasing ensures the fruit filling doesn’t stick and helps create a beautiful, golden crust around the edges.

2. Craft the vibrant fruit filling. First, hull and quarter your fresh strawberries. Then, slice your rhubarb stalks into uniform ½-inch pieces. In a large mixing bowl, combine the prepared strawberries and rhubarb. Add the granulated sugar, all-purpose flour, and vanilla extract. Toss gently until all the fruit is thoroughly coated, ensuring an even distribution of sweetness and thickening agents.

3. Transfer the filling. Carefully spoon the sugar-coated fruit mixture into your prepared baking pan. Spread it out into an even layer, ensuring the fruit is distributed uniformly across the bottom of the dish for consistent baking.

4. Prepare the irresistible oat topping. In a separate medium bowl, combine the dry ingredients for the topping: old-fashioned oats, all-purpose flour, light brown sugar, ground cinnamon, and a pinch of salt. Pour in the melted butter and mix well until the mixture is crumbly and sandy. For that perfect mix of crunchy and chewy textures, use your hands to gently clump some of the mixture together into small clusters.

5. Top and prepare for baking. Evenly sprinkle the prepared oat crisp topping over the fruit filling, ensuring it forms a complete and generous layer. To catch any potential bubbly overflow from the fruit juices during baking, place your skillet or pie plate on a rimmed baking sheet. This keeps your oven clean and makes for easier handling.

6. Bake to golden perfection. Bake your crisp in the preheated oven at 350°F (175°C) for 40 to 50 minutes. You’ll know it’s ready when the oat topping is beautifully golden brown and the fruit filling is visibly bubbling around the edges, indicating that it’s cooked through and lusciously jammy.

This strawberry rhubarb crisp recipe is incredibly versatile, allowing for easy adjustments and delicious variations to suit your taste and pantry. Here are some expert tips and creative ideas to make this dessert truly your own:

• Utilize frozen rhubarb with ease. Don’t have fresh rhubarb on hand? Frozen rhubarb works just as well! The key is to first thaw it completely and then thoroughly pat it dry with paper towels. This crucial step helps remove excess moisture that frozen fruit tends to release, ensuring your crisp topping remains perfectly golden and, well, crisp, rather than becoming soggy.
• Infuse a bright citrusy twist. To add an extra layer of brightness and complexity to the fruit filling, consider stirring in 1 to 2 tablespoons of fresh orange juice or lemon juice. Citrus zest (about 1 teaspoon) can also be added for an even more pronounced aroma. This little zing perfectly complements and rounds out the sweet and tart flavors of the strawberries and rhubarb, especially if your strawberries are particularly ripe and sweet.
• Customize the sweetness to your preference. I appreciate the natural sweet-tart harmony of the fresh berries and rhubarb. However, if you have a sweeter tooth, don’t hesitate to adjust the sugar content. Feel free to add an extra tablespoon or two of granulated sugar to the fruit filling. Taste a small piece of your raw rhubarb to gauge its tartness before adding sugar – some stalks are naturally sweeter than others.
• Explore other fruit combinations. This recipe is a fantastic canvas for other seasonal fruits! One of my favorite variations involves swapping the strawberries for diced apples. Use about 2 cups of a firm, sweet-tart apple variety like Honeycrisp, Granny Smith, or Pink Lady. The classic combination of apples and rhubarb is a match made in dessert heaven. Blueberries, peaches, or even a mixed berry blend also work beautifully, though you might need to adjust sugar slightly depending on the fruit’s natural sweetness.
• Effortlessly make it gluten-free. Transforming this into a delicious gluten-free dessert is incredibly simple. Ensure you use certified gluten-free rolled oats for the topping. For both the fruit filling and the crisp topping, substitute the all-purpose flour with your favorite 1:1 gluten-free baking blend. Many popular brands like Bob’s Red Mill 1-to-1 Baking Flour or King Arthur Gluten-Free Measure for Measure Flour work wonderfully without altering the texture or flavor significantly.

Make Ahead & Storage Instructions

Planning ahead for a special occasion or simply want to enjoy this delicious crisp throughout the week? Here’s how to best prepare and store your strawberry rhubarb crisp:

Make Ahead: This crisp is excellent for preparing in advance. You can fully assemble the crisp, including both the fruit filling and the oat topping, and then refrigerate it unbaked for up to 24 hours. When you’re ready to bake, simply place it directly from the fridge into your preheated oven. Be sure to add an extra 5–10 minutes to the baking time to account for the chilled dish.

Storing Leftovers: Any leftover rhubarb strawberry crisp can be stored in the refrigerator, tightly covered with plastic wrap or foil, for up to 4 days. While it’s delicious cold, for the best experience, warm individual servings in the microwave until heated through. Alternatively, you can pop the entire dish back into a 300°F (150°C) oven for 10–15 minutes, or until the topping is crisp again and the fruit filling is warm and bubbly.

If you’ve fallen in love with the comforting flavors of this strawberry rhubarb crisp, you’re in for a treat! There’s a whole world of delightful fruit desserts waiting to be explored. Here are some more of our favorite recipes that celebrate fresh fruit in the most delicious ways:

• Easy Mix-and-Match Fruit Crumble
• Heartwarming Apple Pear Crisp
• Quick Stovetop Strawberry Dumplings
• Simple Strawberry Slab Pie
• Rustic Strawberry Galette