Cherry Crumb Bars Recipe
Delight in these Cherry Crumb Bars featuring a buttery shortbread base topped with a luscious cherry filling and a crunchy crumb topping. Perfectly balanced between sweet and tart, these bars are baked to golden perfection for a satisfying dessert or snack.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Total Time: 4 hours 55 minutes
- Yield: 9 bars 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
Scale
Cherry Layer
- 2 cups pitted cherries, halved or quartered
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar (use 3 tablespoons if using sour cherries)
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch (16 grams)
- 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
Shortbread Base & Crumb Topping
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter (168 grams), melted
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour (219 grams)
- 2/3 cup granulated sugar (133 grams)
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch (24 grams)
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
Instructions
- Preheat Oven: Preheat your oven to 325°F (170°C) and line an 8×8 inch (20×20 cm) pan with parchment paper, leaving an overhang for easy removal.
- Prepare Cherries: Pit the cherries and slice them in half or quarters. In a medium bowl, combine cherries, sugar, cornstarch, and lemon juice. Toss to coat and set aside.
- Mix Dry Ingredients: In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, granulated sugar, cornstarch, and salt for the shortbread. Exclude the brown sugar at this stage.
- Add Butter: Stir the melted butter into the dry mixture using a fork until the texture is crumbly.
- Form Base Layer: Press slightly more than half of the crumbly shortbread mixture evenly into the prepared pan.
- Bake Base: Bake the shortbread base for 15-20 minutes or until set but not browned. Remove from the oven but keep the oven on.
- Prepare Topping Crumble: Mix the reserved shortbread crumbs with the brown sugar in the bowl.
- Assemble Bars: Carefully spread the cherry filling evenly over the baked shortbread base, avoiding any excess juice. Then sprinkle the brown sugar crumb mixture evenly over the cherries.
- Bake Final: Return the pan to the oven and bake for about 25 minutes or until the top is golden and the cherry juice is bubbling.
- Cool and Slice: Allow the bars to cool completely for 3-4 hours. Use the parchment overhang to lift the bars from the pan and cut into 9 squares with a sharp knife.
Notes
- Cherries: Prefer fresh cherries to avoid soggy bases and longer baking times that frozen cherries cause. Approximately 1 lb (450 grams) cherries used.
- Nutrition: Nutrition estimates are based on cutting the pan into 9 equal pieces and 1 piece per serving.
- Storage: Store bars in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Keywords: cherry crumb bars, cherry dessert, shortbread bars, fruit bars, bake cherry bars
Find it online: https://mixitwitjoe.com/cherry-crumb-bars-recipe/
