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With a hint of almond, a heavenly glaze, and bursts of sweet cherries, these delicious Cherry Bars are the sweetest way to treat a crowd!
If you love all the flavors in Cherry Pie, you’ll love these simple no-fuss cherry bars! They’re similar to our Peach Crumb Bars but with a rich red color and tart cherry taste. Add them to your list of easy dessert recipes!
For the cherry Lovers!
Have any of your friends ever made a dessert before, and after trying it you tell them, “I NEED that recipe!!” Well, that’s exactly what happened when I tried my friend, Marie’s, cherry bars.
These cherry squares were DELICIOUS, but the two things I loved most about them were:
A) they had almond extract which is my all-time FAVORITE ingredient.
B) they just looked darn right pretty. And who can resist a pretty treat?
These bars are great for so many reasons, but it also serves a ton, making it perfect for parties and get-togethers. So if you love cherries and are wanting Cherry Pie and need to feed a crowd, opt for this recipe instead!
Making Cherry Bars
PREP. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease your 10 ½ x 15 ½ jelly roll pan.
CRUST. Cream sugar, butter, and vanilla in a medium bowl until light and fluffy. Add eggs, beating well. Add flour and baking powder, and stir just until blended.
CHERRY FILLING. Spread ⅔ of the batter into the cookie sheet. Spread the pie filling over the batter. Drop the remaining batter by teaspoonfuls over the pie filling.
BAKE. Bake for 33-38 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely.
GLAZE. For the glaze, mix together the glaze ingredients in a medium bowl; drizzle over cooled bars. Let set until the glaze is set.
CUT. Cut into bars/squares. Enjoy!
Recipe Tips
Pan size. If you do not have a jelly roll pan that is 10×15 you can use a 9×13 pan. However, the dough will be thicker and will require a longer baking time.
No sticking. To make cutting and serving cherry dessert bars easy, simply line your pan with parchment paper. Once the bars cool a bit, use the overhanging parchment paper to lift it out of the pan.
Perfect slices. Once it has been removed from the pan, use a sharp knife, and wipe the blade between cuts to make even squares.
Cream Cheese. Adding a cream cheese layer is also really delicious. Simply beat together 8 oz cream cheese (softened), ¼ cup sugar, and 1 egg. Spread it over the batter, then add the cherry pie filling layer.
How to Store
STORE. Keep the cherry bars in an airtight container, separating the layers with parchment or wax paper. They will keep in the fridge for 3-4 days.
FREEZE. Wrap each bar with plastic wrap. Then, either wrap them each again with aluminum foil or place the plastic-wrapped bars in a freezer-safe container.
Freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw before serving.
Recipe FAQ
This recipe is pretty easy to change and use your favorite pie filling. Instead of using a cherry pie filling, use blueberry, peach, raspberry, strawberry, or apple pie filling.
If you do not have a jelly roll pan that is 10×15 you can use a 9×13 pan. However, the dough will be thicker and will require a longer baking time.
For more bar desserts, try:
Cherry Bars
Equipment
- 10½ x 15½ jelly roll pan
Ingredients
Bar
- 1¾ cup sugar
- 1 cup butter, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4 eggs
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1½ teaspoon baking powder
- 21 ounces cherry pie filling
Glaze
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1-2 tablespoon milk
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Grease your 10½ x 15½ jelly roll pan.
- Cream sugar, butter, and vanilla in a medium bowl until light and fluffy. Add eggs, beating well. Add flour and baking powder, and stir just until blended.
- Spread ⅔ of the batter into the cookie sheet. Spread the pie filling over the batter. Drop the remaining batter by teaspoonfuls over the pie filling.
- Bake for 33-38 minutes or until the toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cool completely.
Glaze
- Mix the glaze ingredients in a medium bowl; drizzle over cooled bars. Let set until the glaze is set.
- Cut into bars. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
So good and so easy and that almond extract really took the flavor over the edge!
These cherry bars were such a delicious treat! I had 2 on their own and added one to ice cream, they were the best dessert!! I can’t wait to make them again for Valentine’s day!
The BEST way to eat cherries! … aside from your cherry pie! It was so easy to make and absolutely delicious.
Made these for my in-laws & they were a big hit! They are soft & the glaze takes them to the top!
My husband loves anything cherries! Such a perfect dessert with all the flavors we love.
Ive made These sEveral times and they are always a hit. Im Wondering, has anyone Popped a few blueberrIes into the filling to get the red, white anD blue effect? Thinking of makinG these foR a 4th of july work potluck. What do you thiNk?
Great idea! That would be pretty & delicious! Happy you liked them! Thank you!
I was making dessert for 75 people. Very easy! Hint for ease of spread the bott layer of dough is to put seran wrap over and press out with ease!
Thank you for sharing that!! I hope it was a hit!
Do these need to be refrigerated after baking? Or can I take these to work and leave at the coffee bar?
No, you totally don’t have to! I hope they are a hit at work! Thank you 🙂
Definitely easy and I did use the required size jelly roll pan. And they turned out really pretty but they’re only fair. Did nobody else find that one can of cherry pie filling didn’t cover that large of an area so not every bar has cherries in it they may have a tiny bit of juice in it. And the crust is more like a soft shortbread. We had seven of us tasting it and nobody thought it was great. Not very sweet I do like the hint of almond and the pan fed a ton of people.
Thanks for the feedback and for giving the recipe a try!
I made this in my jelly roll pan 13 x 17 and they are burnt. I should of known when I had to spread the dough so thin to make it fit across the pan. If you could include the dimensions of your pan, it would be appreciated although I don’t think I will try it again anyway. This is the third pinterest recipe I’ve made that has been a total fail.
I am sorry that they burnt! I have a 10 1/2 x 15 1/2 pan, so yours is slightly larger & would be thinner. Also, keep in mind that all ovens are different, so you may need to adjust the baking time. Mine gets super hot, so I know the time will always be less, than what is suggested. Thanks for trying them though!!
Yum – thank you Kristyn and Happy 4th to you and your family~
THANK YOU, LIZ!! 😀