Chewy Cherry Bars

Today was really, really cold. This morning it was 9 degrees outside! I think it finally made it up to 23 degrees. It sure did feel colder though since we had the North wind blowing too. For dinner we just had simple soup and sandwiches. I haven't had it in a long time so it was a really nice change.

Tonight I made a recipe from this month's Cooking Pleasures magazine. I thought it would taste really good since it had cherries in it. I didn't care for it, but Gary said they were good. They have like a cookie crust on the bottom and are topped with a simple icing. I was supposed to drizzle it, but it just looked like a big ole glob so I spread it around. That may have been why I didn't like it. They tasted a little too sweet for me. They were fairly easy to make and made quite a bit of them.

Chewy Cherry Bars

Crust:
1 Cup flour
1 Cup oats
1 Cup brown sugar, packed
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 Cup butter

Filling:
2 eggs
1 Cup brown sugar lightly packed
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 Tbs flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 Cup coconut
1 Cup marachino cherries, drained and coarsely chopped
2 (10-oz) or 1 (16-oz) jar
1/2 Cup pecans

Icing:
2 Tbsp butter
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 Cups powdered sugar
1 Tbsp milk

Combine flour, oats, brown sugar and baking soda in mixing bowl. Cut in butter until crumbly. Press into a 13x9 cake pan. Bake at 350 for 10 minutes.

Beat eggs, brown sugar and extract together thoroughly. Combine flour and baking powder. Stir into egg mixture. Mix well. Stir in coconut, cherries and nuts. Spread evenly over crust. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes, or until lightly browned. Cool immediately.

Beat all ingredients of icing together until smooth and creamy. Drizzle over bars. Makes about 4 dozen bars.

Source: Cooking Pleasures Magazine December/January 06