Cherry Pie Bars

Today is a big day.

It's the hubby's and I's 5th anniversary today! 

We cheated last night and went out for a couple of beers, even though we are going out today. We were sitting in our local brewery, talking brewing beer with the guy that makes the beer. The hubby was lively and engaged (he loves talking about brewing beer, and has no one to talk to about it around here), and even got to sample a couple of beers that the brewery hasn't finished yet. He was getting so excited over beer, and he was just so happy. It's moments like these that make my heart overflow, and I realize there's nowhere else I'd rather be.

Yes, I'm 2700 miles from home, my family, my friends, living in the boondocks on the Ohio-Kentucky border. But I love it! I'd follow that man anywhere. He could tell me we were moving to Cameroon and I'd probably say, "Ok!". 

I take that back-I'm not sure about Cameroon :)

But seriously, we did discuss our marriage over craft beers. Not every couple makes it to their 5th anniversary, and for that, we are grateful. I won't sit here and tell you that everyday is easy, because it's not. No matter what, there are 2 separate and distinct people living in my house and sometimes, sometimes they are going to clash. That's life. That's marriage. For better or worse, right? How in the world are you going to know when the better times are when you've never experienced the worse? How are you going to trust that person and know that they are strong enough to help you through if you haven't come through on the other side of a crisis? The hubby and I've had our share of hard times, and you know what? For that, I'm grateful as well. We make a great team, and I feel I could make it through anything with him at my side. 

I'll climb down off my marriage soapbox now. It's jut a topic that makes my blood boil, what with the younger generation treating marriage like Kim Kardashian. Going into a marriage with the thought in their heads, "You know what? If this doesn't work out, I can just get a divorce!". Uh, kids, if that thought is in your head, perhaps you should contemplate the marriage a bit longer before taking the plunge. Girls these days though, all they seem to care about is the white dress, the ring, walking down the aisle, and having their day in the sun. Not one thought about the day after the wedding. Or the next 18,262 days after that.

What do you know? Almost went off on my soapbox again! Let's talk about these bars now, shall we?

You are going to want to make these bars. They are amaze-balls. The hubby doesn't like cherry pie, and even he went gaga over these bars. They are the perfect portable version of cherry pie. Yummy, gooey cherry pie filling baked over chewy, almond sugar cookie with a creamy vanilla drizzle over the top. It doesn't get much better. 

One tip- After I baked these, I knew they were going to be hard to get out of the pan. I meant to put them in the fridge for 20 minutes before cutting them, but accidentally left them overnight. This completely changed the texture of the bars. If you are going to go this route, be sure and take the bars out of the fridge right away. The bars will keep at room temp that way. However, the bars are darn good cold too, so you could store these in the fridge if that's your preference. 

The hubby and I were going to go out to dinner at a fancy restaurant tonight, however we completely scrapped that plan over beers last night. I know, I know, what kind of a foodie am I anyway? I'm turning down the chance for absolutely hands-down amazing food? Call me crazy. We decided to head to Huntington, WV and go for a run, to the mall, and to our favorite bar for margaritas and tacos. This plan fits us much better :)

Happy Wednesday everyone!

Ingredients (makes 16-20 bars):

1 cup butter softened

2 cups granulated sugar

4 eggs, room temp

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 tsp almond extract

3 cups flour

1 tsp salt

1 (21 oz) can cherry pie filling

1 cup powdered sugar

2-3 tbsp vanilla coffee creamer

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350º. Grease a 9x13 pan. Set aside.

2. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar for 1-2 minutes with a hand mixer, or until light and fluffy. Mix in eggs. Mix in vanilla and almond extract.

3. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour and salt. Add dry ingredients to wet. Mix until combined.

4. Spread 3/4 of dough into pan. Spread cherry filling on top of dough. Drop spoonfuls of remaining dough on top of cherry filling. Bake in preheated oven 35-40 minutes, or until bars are lightly browned on top. Remove from oven, and allow to cool for 60 minutes in the pan. 

5. In a small bowl, whisk powdered sugar and creamer together until you get a good "drizzling" texture. Drizzle the glaze over the bars. Allow the glaze to set for 30 minutes. Slice into bars, and serve immediately. Store in an airtight container.

Printable Recipe

Recipe adapted from The Recipe Critic. 

If you liked this recipe, you might enjoy these-

Lemon Blueberry Crumb Bars

Vanilla Bean Custard Bars

Raspberry Crumb Bars

Linked to: Weekend Potluck, Foodie Friday, Treasure Box Tuesdays