These soft and chewy cherry almond bars are quick and easy to make and taste fantastic. The perfect easy dessert that the whole family will love!
These cherry almond bars are so easy to make, they can be in the oven in just 15-20 minutes, and they taste fantastic. It’s like a soft almond cookie bar with a swirl of sweet cherry pie filling.
They are so tasty. I think the entire batch of these tasty little bars disappeared in about 2 days. Which is rather impressive when there’s only five of us!
Quick and easy to make, and they taste fantastic. These cherry almond bars are a winner!
Do cherries and almonds go together?
Cherries and almonds are related to each other. They are in the same family along with a lot of other stone fruit. So they pair really well together in desserts.
These cherry almond bars use almond extract in the soft cookie bar, and are topped with a swirl of cherry pie filling. The two flavours compliment each other perfectly and make for a great tasting dessert bar.
What is cherry pie filling made of?
Cherry pie filling is made with fresh or frozen, sweet or sour cherries, a bit of sugar, and thickened with cornstarch. If I’m using sweet cherries, I also add a bit of fresh lemon juice to the mixture.
It’s very easy to make. Simply combine the cherries, sugar, and cornstarch in a saucepan, and cook it over medium heat until the cherries break down a bit and it thickens into a smooth, shiny sauce.
That being said, if you don’t feel like making the cherry pie filling from scratch, you can easily replace it with canned cherry pie filling.
How to make Cherry Almond Bars:
- The batter for these bars is extremely thick and sticky, so it will be difficult to spread in the baking pan. Using a silicone spatula sprayed with non-stick cooking spray helps a bit.
- I use a butter knife to swirl the cherry pie filling through the batter a little bit, but it’s not totally necessary. You can just drizzle the pie filling over top of the batter and call it good if you like.
- These bars freeze well for up to 3 months in an airtight container. Or they will keep well in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-5 days.
Here are some more great bar recipes for you:
- Strawberry Rhubarb Bars
- Cranberry Bliss Bars
- Peanut Butter S’mores Bars
- Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars
- Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
Cherry Almond Bars
These soft and chewy cherry almond bars are quick and easy to make and taste fantastic. The perfect easy dessert that the whole family will love!
Ingredients
For the cherry pie filling:
- 1 cup sour cherries, pitted (fresh or frozen)
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
For the almond bars:
- 2/3 cup salted butter, softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 tablespoon lemon juice
- 3/4 teaspoon almond extract
- 1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- powdered sugar for sprinkling
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
For the cherry pie filling:
- In a medium saucepan over medium heat, stir together the cherries, cornstarch, and sugar.
- Cook, stirring, until the cherries break down and the sauce thickens, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool completely.
For the almond bars:
- Line a 9x13 inch baking pan with parchment paper or tin foil, or lightly spray it with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.
- In a large bowl with an electric mixer, or in the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
- Add the eggs, lemon juice, and almond extract, and mix until well combined.
- Add the flour, salt, and baking soda, and mix again.
- Spread the dough evenly in the prepared baking pan. The dough will be very sticky. Using a greased spatula makes it a little bit easier to spread.
- Drop the cherry pie filling in spoonfuls all over the batter. Use a butter knife to swirl the cherries a little bit into the batter.
- Bake for 20-22 minutes until the edges of the squares start to brown and the middle looks set.
- Allow to cool completely in the pan, then cut into squares, dust with powdered sugar, and store in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-5 days.
- The bars can also be frozen for up to 3 months.
Notes
If you don’t want to make the cherry pie filling from scratch, you can replace it with 2/3 cup canned cherry pie filling.
If you want to use sweet cherries instead of sour cherries, add 1 teaspoon of lemon juice and decrease the sugar to 2 tablespoons.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
12Serving Size:
1 barAmount Per Serving: Calories: 283Total Fat: 11gSaturated Fat: 7gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 58mgSodium: 165mgCarbohydrates: 44gFiber: 1gSugar: 32gProtein: 3g
Nutrition Information is estimated based on ingredients used and may not be exact.