These bars have a homemade fresh cherry filling between an almond shortbread cookie crust and a crumbly almond streusel topping. Use fresh seasonal sweet cherries or frozen whole cherries to make this delicious dessert year round.
My Cherry Almond Streusel Bars are bursting with cherry-almond flavor! The addition of almond paste in the almond shortbread cookie crust and the streusel topping intensifies the almond flavor. But what really makes these bars special is the luscious homemade fresh cherry filling. It’s really easy to make and so much better than any commercial canned cherry pie filling. This recipe can easily be halved by using a 9 x 9-inch square baking pan. Halving the recipe will make 9 servings. Serve it with or without a scoop of vanilla ice cream for a fabulous dessert.
INGREDIENTS TO MAKE CHERRY ALMOND STREUSEL BARS
- Sweet cherries
- All-purpose flour
- Sugar
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Powdered sugar
- Cornstarch
- Old-Fashioned Rolled Oats
- Unsalted butter
- Almond paste
- Pure almond extract
- Fresh lemon juice
- Water
- Sliced almonds (optional for topping only)
HOW TO MAKE CHERRY ALMOND STREUSEL BARS
- Crust and Topping (divided):
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Spray a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with cooking spray and line with a sheet of overhanging parchment paper; set aside.
- In a food processor fitted with metal blade, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt; pulse to combine.
- Add butter cubes, almond paste crumbles, and almond extract; pulse until mixture resembles wet sand.
- Set aside 1 ½ cups of the mixture in a separate bowl for the topping.
- Stir in the rolled oats and sliced almonds (if using) and set aside.
- Pour the remaining mixture into the prepared baking pan and press it evenly on the bottom and slightly up the edges.
- Bake for 12-15 minutes, until the edges are just beginning to brown.
- Filling:
- In a medium saucepan whisk together water, lemon juice, and cornstarch.
- Add the cherries, sugar, butter, and salt.
- Bring to a simmer, stirring frequently until thickened, about 5 minutes.
- Spread the filling over the baked crust.
- Pinch the topping mixture to form small clumps, then sprinkle the topping over the cherry filling.
- Bake until the filling is beginning to bubble and the topping is light brown, about 25-30 minutes.
- Place the pan on a wire rack to cool completely before icing.
- Icing:
- I recommend cutting the bars into desired sizes before icing.
- In a small bowl, whisk powdered sugar, water, and almond extract.
- *Add the water 2 Tbsp at a time until drizzle consistency but not runny.
- Drizzle with a spoon or piping bag method.
- Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 3 to 5 days.
Cherry Almond Streusel Bars
These bars have a homemade fresh cherry filling between an almond shortbread cookie crust and a crumbly almond streusel topping. Use fresh seasonal sweet cherries or frozen whole cherries to make this delicious dessert year round.
Servings: 12
Ingredients
Crust and Topping (divided):
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes
- 1 cup (6 oz) almond paste, crumbled
- 1 tsp pure almond extract
- ⅓ cup Old-Fashioned Rolled Oats (optional for topping only)
- ⅓ cup sliced almonds (optional for topping only)
Filling:
- ½ cup water
- 6 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 4 Tbsp cornstarch (if using frozen cherries, add 5 Tbsp cornstarch)
- 8 cups sweet cherries, pitted (or 2 lbs bag frozen sweet cherries)
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 Tbsp unsalted butter
- ½ tsp salt
Icing:
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 4-6 Tbsp water
- ½ tsp pure almond extract
Instructions
- Crust and Topping (divided): Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with cooking spray and line with a sheet of overhanging parchment paper; set aside. In a food processor fitted with metal blade, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt; pulse to combine. Add butter cubes, almond paste crumbles, and almond extract; pulse until mixture resembles wet sand.
- Set aside 1 ½ cups of the mixture in a separate bowl for the topping. Stir in the rolled oats and sliced almonds (if using) and set aside. Pour the remaining mixture into the prepared baking pan and press it evenly on the bottom and slightly up the edges. Bake for 12-15 minutes, until the edges are just beginning to brown.
- Filling: In a medium saucepan whisk together water, lemon juice, and cornstarch. Add the cherries, sugar, butter, and salt. Bring to a simmer, stirring frequently until thickened, about 5 minutes. Spread the filling over the baked crust.
- Pinch the topping mixture to form small clumps, then sprinkle the topping over the cherry filling. Bake until the filling is beginning to bubble and the topping is light brown, about 25-30 minutes. Place the pan on a wire rack to cool completely before icing.
- Icing: I recommend cutting the bars into desired sizes before icing. In a small bowl, whisk powdered sugar, water, and almond extract. *Add the water 2 Tbsp at a time until drizzle consistency but not runny. Drizzle with a spoon or piping bag method. Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 3 to 5 days.
Notes
- Delicious with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
- To halve the recipe: Use a 9 x 9-inch baking pan and prepare as directed above using half of each ingredient. Makes 9 servings.
