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Headed West!

This weekend my Business Man and I are homeward-bound back to Illinois to have a nice visit with our families. Except, his family just left on vacation to DC... so that means we'll be visiting with my family only. Poor planning on our part.
This is good news for several reasons...
 1. My parents got a new puppy literally 3 days after my Business Man and I got married and I moved to the Bean Town. I have been seeing puppy pictures and hearing puppy talk for the last 4 weeks and I absolutely cannot wait to meet and play and cuddle with this puppy.
2. I seem to have left a lot of things that are important to me at my parent's house. Including but not limited to the following: 
    • several of my beloved cookbooks     
    • my new Kitchenaid mixer (Wedding gift from my parents! And I haven't even used it in the Bean Town yet!)
    • DVD collection (our shelves are looking mighty empty... need to fill up that DVD rack!)
    • my cupcake decorating supplies (...because we all need to be able to decorate gourmet cupcakes whenever we please)
    • all my shoes (except my brown sandals, running shoes, and a pair of flip-flops, which is all I packed for the honeymoon)
    • all my jewelry (except my wedding day pearls)
3. I am nearing the 500-mile mark on my running shoes, and I have yet to find a running shoe store here in the Bean Town. I will be able to go to my beloved Running Central and get new shoes this weekend... yay!
4. And of course, the most important reason, getting to see our fam! And maybe a friend or two as well...
So, as I gathered our belongings this morning to get ready for the trip, I thought to myself... "I think I will bring a goodie home... to show my parents how much I appreciate their hospitality."


Haha... really I just wanted an excuse to experiment in the kitchen. :-)


My mom loves all things cherries, and all things chocolate, so I thought up these Dark Chocolate Cherry Crumb Bars. I have been craving a crumb bar lately, and also something chocolatey. Once I remembered my mom's love for cherries, these were born. 







Dark Chocolate Cherry Crumb Bars

Makes one 8x8-inch pan. About 16 bars.

 Ingredients
  • Crust
    • ¾ cup brown sugar
    • ¾ tsp. baking powder
    • 1 cup flour
    • 1 cup oats
    • ¼ tsp. salt
    • 11 tbsp. butter
    • 1 egg
    • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • Filling
    • 2 ½ cups sweet cherries, pitted and halved
    • ¼ cup sugar
    • 2 tsp. cornstarch
    • 4 oz. good-quality dark chocolate, chopped
    • ½ cup sliced almonds


 Method
Preheat oven to 375*F. Line an 8-inch square pan with foil and spray with cooking spray.

For crust, combine brown sugar, baking powder, flour, oats, and salt in a large bowl. Cut in the butter until crumbly; add egg and vanilla and combine. It should still be pretty crumbly.

Spread about 2/3 of crust mixture into bottom of prepared pan.

To make filling, combine cherries, sugar, and cornstarch. Spread over crust in pan. Sprinkle with the dark chocolate chunks, and then cover with the remaining crust mixture. Top the whole thing off with the sliced almonds.

Bake in the preheated oven for 40-45 minutes until golden brown and set. Let cool; then remove from pan and cut into bars.
Here's a photo montage of all the different steps/layers...


Just the bottom crust.

Topped with the cherries.
Topped with the chocolate... I used Ghiradelli's 60% Cacao. It is tasty.
Top layer of crumb mixture.

And the almonds.


The finished product, plated.


I think these turned out wonderfully! They filled our apartment with the most wonderful smell as they were baking. The contrast of the tart cherries and rich chocolate with the sweet, buttery crust is like a party in your mouth.


Overhead view.


A close-up shot.



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Comments

Anonymous said…
Oh my, these look yummy! Tell your family "hi" for me.
July 30, 2010 at 3:14 PM
Me said…
those look so good! and i like how the recipe was in those neat squares!
July 30, 2010 at 5:25 PM
Anonymous said…
Can't wait to try them!!
July 31, 2010 at 10:51 AM
Kristi Kay said…
you are amazing!!! :)
August 3, 2010 at 12:47 PM
Anonymous said…
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