Cherry Berry Bars

If you ever find yourself with a mess of berries and cherries that need be consumed quickly, this recipe is your new best friend.

After buying more berries than my family could eat, I decided to cook them in a saucepan to make a compote to serve with yogurt or ice cream. When my oldest son started asking for a cherry pie, I improvised.

These dessert bars were delicious, with a dough that reminds me of shortbread. My kids put them in their school lunches and ate them for after school snacks. They disappeared from my kitchen in just a few days.

Mangia! Mangia!
Andrea

Cherry Berry Bars
Inspired by this recipe from the Kitchn

7 to 8 cups of berries (blackberries, strawberries, raspberries) and cherries, hulled or pitted, and halved
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon corn starch
1 tablespoon water
3 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 large egg yolks
2 teaspoons almond extract
2 sticks cold, unsalted butter, cut into cubes
1 tablespoon melted butter
1 tablespoon course sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 9 x 13 inch baking pan with cooking spray.

Place berries, cherries and 1/2 cup sugar in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Cook until berries break down and release their juices, stirring frequently to avoid burning and lowering the flame if needed.

In a small bowl, mix corn starch with water until dissolved. Stir into berries. Continue to cook until berries thicken. Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice. Set aside to cool.

Insert the blade attachment on your food processor. Add flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt and pulse to combine. Add egg yolks, almond extract and butter. Pulse in short intervals until dough comes together (about 1 minute). The dough will be crumbly and soft.

Transfer about 2/3 of the dough to the baking pan. Use your fingers to press the dough into the bottom of the pan. Spread the cherry mixture evenly over the dough.

Scoop tablespoons of the remaining dough into your hand and flatten them into an oval shape, then place on top of berry mixture. Repeat until you use all of the dough, evenly spacing the dough ovals on top of the fruit. The berries will not be completely covered.

Brush the dough pieces with the melted butter, then sprinkle with the coarse sugar.

Bake until the dough is light brown and the fruit is bubbling, about 40 minutes. Cool completely in the pan before cutting into bars.

Chocolate Chip Pecan Pie Bars

The husband loves golf. So you can imagine his glee when the Masters Golf Tournament comes around every spring. He dreams about making a pilgrimage to Augusta to watch his favorite athletes compete, but that wasn't in the cards this year. Instead we decided to host a little Masters viewing party for his family.

We noshed on deviled eggs and sipped Arnold Palmers while the husband and his brothers tended the grill. And for dessert, we enjoyed decadent Chocolate Pecan Pie Bars.

With a salty-sweet shortbread crust, gooey filling, rich chocolate chips, and crunchy pecans, these dessert bars have something for everyone. Serve them with ice cream if you really want to gild the lily. And I love a gilded lily.

Let's get cooking!
Erin

Chocolate Chip Pecan Pie Bars
Adapted from America's Test Kitchen

Crust:
2 cups flour
2/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup pecans, toasted
1-2 teaspoons salt*
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
12 tablespoons cold butter, cut in 1/2" pieces

Filling:
1 cup brown sugar
2/3 cup corn syrup
8 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled
4 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
3 1/2 cups pecans, chopped coarse
1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9" x 13" baking dish with aluminum foil. (The shiny side of the foil should be touching the pan with the non-shiny side up.) Set pan aside.

First, make the crust. Add flour, brown sugar, pecans, salt, and baking powder to your food processor. Pulse a few times until mixture is combined. Add cold butter and process until it's incorporated into a sandy texture. Press into an even layer in the prepared pan. Bake until crust is fragrant and beginning to brown, 17-20 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare the filling. In a large bowl, whisk together brown sugar, corn syrup, butter, vanilla, and salt. Whisk in eggs until everything is combined. Spread over warm crust. Alternately sprinkle pecans and chocolate chips over filling. Bake until filling is golden and set in the middle, about 35 minutes. Allow to cool completely before slicing and serving.

*I used 2 teaspoons of salt, and you could definitely taste it. We enjoyed the salty-sweet combo, but if that isn't your thing, cut the salt back to 1 teaspoon.

Seven Layer Bars

I first posted my recipe for Seven Layer Bars in 2010. They are one of my all-time favorite treats. Every time I make Seven Layer Bars, I wonder why I don't whip these babies up every week. Oh...I know. Because I would eat every. single. one. And that wouldn't be so great for fitting into my pants. ("Baby weight? No...this is Seven Layer Bar weight.") Studded with chocolate and butterscotch and gilded with the nectar of the gods that is sweetened condensed milk, I can't limit myself to just one. They are just so, so good.

Next time you need a treat for a bake sale, a potluck, or just a night on the couch with Netflix, make yourself a batch of Seven Layer Bars. You'll be glad you did.

Let's get cooking!
Erin

Seven Layer Bars
Originally posted October 2010

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/2 cup butter
1 heaping cup chopped pecans
1 heaping cup chocolate chips
1 heaping cup butterscotch chips
1 3/4 cups sweetened flaked coconut
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9" x 13" baking dish and set aside.

In a small bowl, combine graham cracker crumbs and butter. Press evenly into the bottom of the prepared baking dish to form a crust. Sprinkle pecans over the crust. Top with chocolate chips and butterscotch chips. Sprinkle coconut on top of that. Finally, drizzle sweetened condensed milk over the coconut. (I find it helps to avoid drizzling the sweetened condensed milk around the very edges of the pan. The condensed milk can bake onto the edges of the pan, and this makes it really sticky and tough to get out of the pan.)

Bake in preheated oven for about 20 minutes, until the coconut is light golden brown. Cool, then slice into bars.