Cherry Bars

The price is right for cherries right now because they are in season so it's the perfect time to make these fresh-tasting and easy to make Cherry Bars.

Now is also the time to get extra cherries and freeze them since I have a feeling you'll want to make these Cherry Bars again. Can you imagine how cute these bright red filled bars would be to serve to your sweetie on Valentine's Day? Cherries aren't easy to come by in the winter time, and if you do find them, they're expensive. I'm planning ahead.

Here's the recipe:

Cherry Bars
(makes 24 2-inch bars)
Crumb Mixture:
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 cup shortening
1 egg
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Filling:
5 cups pitted pie cherries (frozen works just fine)
1 cup sugar
4 tablespoons cornstarch
pinch of sea salt
1 teaspoon almond extract

1/2 teaspoon red food coloring (optional)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and grease a 9 x 13 inch pan then line the pan with greased aluminum foil or parchment paper so that after baking the whole thing can be lifted out of the pan after cooling. This makes cutting the bars much easier.

In a medium sized bowl make the crumb mixture by combining the sugar, baking powder, flour, cinnamon and salt. Add the shortening and break it into the mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs. I like to use my fingers to do this. Add the egg, mix well and set aside.

In a sauce pan combine all the filling ingredients and mix well. Cook the mixture over medium heat until simmering and the mixture thickens. Watch it and stir it constantly. This takes about 7 minutes.

The cooked filling. Adding red food coloring in optional but it really does make the filling extra bright and pretty.

To Assemble:
Press half of the crumb mixture into the bottom of the greased and lined pan. Spread the filling evenly over the bottom layer. Crumble the remaining crumb mixture evenly over the filling layer.

The first layer.

The second layer.

The third layer.

Bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until the top is slightly brown and the filling is bubbling. Cool completely before lifting out of the pan and cutting into squares.

Let it cool in the pan before cutting into bars.

Being able to lift it completely out of the pan makes cutting the bars so much easier.

Rhubarb Berry Crumb Bars

Placing the finished bars in cupcake liners made them easy to serve.

I made these Rhubarb Berry Crumb bars to sell at the Springsteen Tribute Concert and they were so easy and such a hit that I have to share the recipe.

I found a recipe called Blueberry Crumb Bars online on the allrecipes.com site. The recipe was rated 4.5 out of 5 stars and there was a note at the top that said "you can use any berry you like." I love a tried and true and versatile recipe.

Because I added a healthy dose of tart rhubarb to the recipe thanks to my sister's jumbo rhubarb crop, I increased the sugar in the filling mixture by 1/4 cup and the cornstarch by 1 teaspoon. I also added a teaspoon of vanilla extract and a pinch of sea salt which I believe enhances the flavor of rhubarb.

Rhubarb Berry Crumb Bars

Crumb Mixture:
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 cups flour
1 cup shortening
1 egg
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Filling:
3 cups berries (I used a combination of blueberry, raspberry and blackberry and frozen works just fine)
1 cup rhubarb, finely diced
3/4 cup sugar
4 heaping teaspoons cornstarch
pinch of sea salt

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and grease a 9 x 13 inch pan.

In a medium sized bowl make the crumb mixture by combining the sugar, baking powder, flour and cinnamon. Add the shortening and break it into the mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs. I like to use my fingers to do this. Add the egg, mix well and set aside.

In another bowl, make filling by adding all the ingredients and mixing well.

To Assemble:
Press half of the crumb mixture into the bottom of the greased pan. Spread the filling evenly over the bottom layer. Crumble the remaining crumb mixture evenly over the filling layer.

Bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until the top is slightly brown and the filling is bubbling. Cool completely before cutting into squares.

Be sure to let the bars cool completely before cutting.