These simple cherry pie bars have all the flavor of cherry pie without all the hard work.
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 stick unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- ½ cups of sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 21-ounce can cherry pie filling
- Ingredients for the glaze:
- 2 ounces cream cheese, softened
- ½ cup powdered sugar sifted
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 to 3 tablespoons milk
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and prepare an 8×8 baking pan by greasing with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a medium bowl, combine the flour and salt.
- Set aside
- Beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla extract and beat to combine.
- Pour in the dry ingredients and mix until well combined.
- Spread two-thirds of the batter over the bottom of the prepared pan.
- Use your fingers to press the dough into the pan, making sure the dough is spread evenly.
- Top the crust with the cherry pie filling.
- Spoon the remaining crust dough over the top of the pie filling.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes, until the top crust is golden brown and the filling is bubbling.
- While the bars are cooling, make the cream cheese glaze by beating together the cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and two tablespoons of milk until smooth. Add more milk if needed.
- When the bars are cooled completely, drizzle the glaze over the top and cut into nine even bars.
Notes
I recommend storing Quick and Easy Cherry pie bars covered at room temperature.
Substituting Vanilla Extract with Almond Extract would be delicious as well.