These sweet cherry bars are packed with chunks of cherries and melted milk chocolate chips! Perfect for an easy baking project!
Cherry season is in full swing right now and other than my kids just eating them as they are, I thought I’d try to update an older recipe that I posted here in 2014. I made the recipe easier, taking out some steps that weren’t totally necessary. The end result is an 8×8 pan of soft cherry bars packed with melted chocolate chips. The consistency is lighter than a brownie and a bit more like a coffee cake without the crumble topping!
Tips for making these cherry bars
- Make sure your butter is at room temperature, it’ll cream together with the brown sugar much better than cold butter would.
- Use Bing cherries which are the most common and come colored with deep dark burgundy colored skins.
- I used milk chocolate chips for my cherry bars but you could use dark chocolate or even butterscotch chips.
- Serve warm with a dollop of vanilla ice cream on top.
- Using dark brown sugar will enhance the caramel flavor, but light brown sugar can be substituted.
FAQ’s about making these bars
Yes you can. Wrap them in a sealed container and freeze for up to one month.
No, you can use your fingers which I find better and less messy.
Yes, but lay them onto a paper towel and get pat dry to get rid of any excess water.
Great idea! I’d definitely go with chopped almonds.
Chopped peaches, apricots, apples and plums would work well. You don’t want to use a fruit that will end up being too soft.
This post has been updated with new directions and photography!
more cherry recipes
Cherry Bars with Milk Chocolate Chips
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups cherries, pitted and halved
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 4 ounces butter, softened
- 2 eggs
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 1 cup milk chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°. Line an 8 x 8 baking pan with parchment paper.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the brown sugar and butter together until creamy.
- Add the eggs one at a time and mix well, scraping the sides of the bowl after each addition.
- Add the vanilla.
- Gradually add the flour and mix on low until well combined.
- Add the chocolate chips and cherries and fold them through the batter with a heavy spatula.
- Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and spread to the sides evenly.
- Bake in the oven for 30 minutes and then let cool for 20 minutes before cutting into squares.
I don’t understand— do you bake it for 20 minutes or let it cool for 20 minutes?
After having made this, I was disappointed in the texture of the bars. I was expecting a dense, chewy texture like cookies or brownies; however, it turned out to be lighter, like a more dense cake. All that being said, the flavor was so delicious!