Here’s a simple, crowd-pleasing recipe for homemade cherry pie bars — sweet, tangy, and perfect for a dessert tray.
🍒 Homemade Cherry Pie Bars
Ingredients
Crust & Crumble:
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Cherry Filling:
- 2 cups pitted cherries (fresh or frozen, thawed)
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 2 tbsp cornstarch
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- ½ tsp almond extract (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat Oven
- 350°F (175°C).
- Line a 9×13-inch pan with parchment paper, leaving an overhang.
- Make Crust & Crumble
- In a bowl, cream butter and sugar until fluffy.
- Mix in flour, salt, and vanilla until crumbly.
- Press about 2/3 of the mixture into the prepared pan for the base. Reserve the rest for topping.
- Prepare Filling
- In a small saucepan, combine cherries, sugar, cornstarch, lemon juice, and almond extract.
- Cook over medium heat until thickened and bubbly. Let cool slightly.
- Assemble Bars
- Spread cherry filling evenly over the crust.
- Sprinkle reserved crumble over the top.
- Bake
- 35–40 minutes or until crumble is golden brown.
- Let cool completely in pan before slicing.
Tips & Variations
- For tartness: Use a mix of sweet and tart cherries.
- Nutty crunch: Add ½ cup chopped almonds or pecans to the crumble.
- Mini pies: Bake in muffin tins for single servings.
These bars are sweet, slightly tangy, and have a buttery crumble that keeps people coming back for more.
If you want, I can also give a gluten-free version or a quick 30-minute shortcut that’s just as delicious.
