Recipe: Chocolate Chip Cherry Bars

One of my favorite summer seasonal treats is cherries. But you always have to buy them in such a large bag! I can only snack on so many cherries by themselves, so I thought I'd bake with them. I found this recipe on the Averie Cooks blog. It sounded yummy and easy, which are my two main criteria when baking!

Ingredients

•  1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted (1 stick)
•  1 cup light brown sugar, packed
•  1 large egg
•  2 teaspoons vanilla extract
•  1 cup all-purpose flour
•  1/4 teaspoon salt (optional)
•  3/4 to 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
•  1 cup cherries (fresh or frozen)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line an 8-by-8-inch pan with aluminum foil, spray with cooking spray.
2. In a medium microwave-safe bowl, melt the butter, about 60 seconds.
3. To the melted butter, add the brown sugar and stir to combine.
4. Add the egg, vanilla, and stir to combine. Add the flour, salt, and stir until just combined, taking care not to over mix or the blondies will be tough.
5. Fold in chocolate chips and fruit, and then pour batter into prepared pan, smoothing it lightly with a spatula if necessary.
6. Bake for 27-32 minutes, or until edges begin to slightly pull away from sides of pan and center is set.
7. Allow bars to cool for at least 1 hour before slicing and serving. Blondies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature or in the refrigerator for up to one week.

Sorry for the terrible lighting. And I forgot to take a photo of the finished product before my sister and I served ourselves... We had already waited over an hour to dig in. We couldn't wait any longer!

Only after I started making the batter did I realize that I don't have an 8x8 inch pan. But I improvised with a trick I learned from the internet: take more aluminum foil than you need and fold over the extra bit to create an interior wall within the larger pan. Otherwise, I followed this recipe closely (choosing to forego the salt and go for a full cup of chocolate chips).

These do taste delicious, and the soft texture is divine, but I would tweak the recipe if I made them again. For one, the chocolate flavor is so strong that it overwhelms everything else. You can barely tell there are even cherries in there! So I would put fewer chocolate chips and add more cherries. I also would add only one teaspoon of vanilla. I was even surprised the recipe called for two, since almost everything else only needs one. And, while of course every oven is different, even at 37 minutes, the inside of my blondies was still very soft, to the point that I was hoping at least the egg got cooked. So don't be surprised if you need to bake yours a little longer.

So I'd definitely make these again, but with a few changes. Otherwise, I recommend!