Chocolate Chip Cherry Bars

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Chocolate Chip Cherry Bars â€” Not sure what to make with cherries? These cherry bars use my favorite blondie base and turn out perfectly every single time! These bars are seriously so good and are a reader favorite! 

Chocolate Chip Cherry Bars stacked next to fresh cherries

Ooey Gooey Chocolate Cherry Bars

This cherry dessert recipe has been a reader favorite since July 2012. Here it is again for the newcomers.

Have you been buying your weight in summer fruit every time you go to the grocery store or pass a farmers market? Okay, well I have. Especially cherries.

I love cherries. They are just so perfect. Their sweetness, their hearty flesh, the chewiness. The only thing not perfect about them are their little pits. Pits are a PITA.

I do have a cherry pitter, but I find it just splatters cherry juice everywhere and doesn’t always poke out the pit. More misfires than proper pokes. If the cherry pit is slightly off-center, the gadget just stabs the cherry down the middle, misses the pit, and said cherry juice splatters even more, so I tend to just slice the cherries with a paring knife and am pretty fast with that.

stack of Chocolate Chip Cherry Bars

I’m also pretty fast with polishing off a one-pound bag of fresh cherries. But between the watermelon, nectarines, blueberries, grapes, standard issue bananas and apples, and then the cherries, even I was running out room. In both my stomach and crisper drawer.

So I decided to make chocolate chip cherry bars. The beauty of this cherry dessert recipe is that it’s fast, one-bowl, and no mixer is required.

I almost used white chocolate chips but then thought, no, semi-sweet chocolate and cherries just go together. After all, dark chocolate-covered cherries are the confections that overpriced Valentine’s Day candy assortment boxes are made of. 

Because of the fruit and the fruit juices released while baking, to say they’re moist and juicy is an understatement.

There’s no granulated sugar in them; just brown sugar. In cookie baking, a higher ratio of brown to white sugar keeps cookies extra soft and moist, and it does the same thing for blondies. It also imparts a caramely-buttery richness that I adore.

The chocolate chips melted everywhere. Can you say hot, juicy, beautiful mess? Cherries and summer fruit never tasted so good.

Chocolate Chip Cherry Bar

What’s in These Chocolate Cherry Bars? 

For these amazing chocolate chip cherry bars, you’ll need: 

  • Unsalted butter
  • Light brown sugar
  • Egg 
  • Vanilla extract
  • All-purpose flour
  • Salt 
  • Semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • Fresh cherries 

Seriously, that’s all you need to make this easy cherry dessert! 

uncooked Chocolate Chip Cherry Bars in square baking pan

How to Make Chocolate Chip Cherry Bars

  1. Melt a stick of butter in a big mixing bowl in the microwave.
  2. Then stir in the brown sugar, an egg, vanilla, and flour.
  3. Fold in the cherries (and maybe a few raspberries, blackberries, strawberries, or blueberries) and chocolate chips and you’re ready to bake.
  4. You’ll know these chocolate cherry bars are ready to come out of the oven when the edges start to pull away from the pan and the center is set. Depending on how gooey you like your blondies, you may want to bake these for a little more or less time than the recipe calls for. 
  5. Cool them properly and well before digging in!
close up of gooey Chocolate Chip Cherry Bars

Can This Recipe Be Doubled?

Most likely, yes! I’ve only made this cherry recipe as written, but you should be fine to double the ingredients and bake in a 9×13-inch pan. 

Should I Use Fresh or Frozen Cherries? 

Although I have experimented and made these bars with frozen cherries and although they theoretically work, frozen cherries tend to release too much juice into the batter and the resulting bars tend to be extremely soft.

For much more of a guarantee that the bars will work for you and set up without worry, I recommend fresh cherries.

Chocolate Chip Cherry Bars — These cherry bars use my favorite blondie base and turn out perfectly every single time! These bars are seriously so good and are a reader favorite!

Can I Make These Bars with Dried Cherries? 

If you have dried cherries on hand, I recommend making my Cranberry Chocolate Chip Blondies (just use dried cherries instead of cranberries, it’ll definitely work!). It’s pretty much the same recipe, but I know for sure that one works well with dried fruit. 

Chocolate Chip Cherry Bars — These cherry bars use my favorite blondie base and turn out perfectly every single time! These bars are seriously so good and are a reader favorite!

Can I Add Other Fruits? 

If you want to use a combination of fresh cherries and other stone fruits like plums, nectarines, peaches, apricots, pluots, or similar, they will work just fine.

You can also try berries such as blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, or blackberries.

How to Store Chocolate Chip Cherry Bars

These chocolate cherry bars can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. 

Can the Bars Be Frozen?

Yes! You can freeze these chocolate chip cherry bars for up to 3 months. Let them cool completely on your counter, then slice and store in a freezer bag or freezer-safe container.

When you’re ready to enjoy them, either reheat them in the oven until the chocolate starts to get gooey, or set them on your counter to thaw. 

Chocolate Chip Cherry Bars — Not sure what to make with cherries? These cherry bars use my favorite blondie base and turn out perfectly every single time! These bars are seriously so good and are a reader favorite! 

Tips for Making Cherry Bars

You can doctor these up with white chocolate chips or coconut flakes, or add most any other type of fruit from peaches to blackberries, fresh or frozen. I’ve tried many combos of fresh, frozen, half-and-half, and things always work out with this blondie base.

Note that baking times will vary based on the types of fruit used and the moisture content of the fruit; and how gooey you like your blondies.

A toothpick inserted into the middle may not come out clean due to the chocolate chips or juicy fruit. So use your best judgement when taking these babies out of the oven! 

Chocolate Chip Cherry Bars — Not sure what to make with cherries? These cherry bars use my favorite blondie base and turn out perfectly every single time! These bars are seriously so good and are a reader favorite! 

Pin This Recipe

4.46 from 624 votes

Chocolate Chip Cherry Bars

By Averie Sunshine
These cherry bars use my favorite blondie base and turn out perfectly every single time!
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Cooling Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour
Servings: 9
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Ingredients  

  • ½ cup unsalted butter, melted (1 stick)
  • 1 cup light brown sugar, packed
  • 1 large egg
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • ¼ teaspoon salt, optional
  • ¾ to 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • 1 cup cherries, fresh or frozen*

Instructions 

  • Preheat oven to 350F. Line an 8-by-8-inch pan with aluminum foil, spray with cooking spray; set aside.
  • In a medium microwave-safe bowl, melt the butter, about 60 seconds.
  • To the melted butter, add the brown sugar and stir to combine.
  • 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.
  • Fold in chocolate chips, fruit (I don’t halve the cherries: I like them chunky and big), and pour batter into prepared pan, smoothing it lightly with a spatula or offset knife if necessary.
  • Bake for 27 to 32 minutes, or until edges begin to slightly pull away from sides of pan and center is set.**
  • 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 1 week or frozen for up to 3 months.

Notes

*Can also use a combination of plums, peaches, nectarines, raspberries, blueberries, strawberries, and blackberries.
**Baking time will vary based on types of fruit used and the moisture content of the fruit; and how gooey you like your blondies. A toothpick inserted into the middle may not come out clean due to the chocolate chips or juicy fruit.

Nutrition

Serving: 1, Calories: 309kcal, Carbohydrates: 43g, Protein: 3g, Fat: 15g, Saturated Fat: 9g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g, Cholesterol: 48mg, Sodium: 76mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 30g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

More Cherry Desserts: 

You can find all of my CHERRY RECIPES HERE. Some of my favorite cherry desserts are below. 

Cherry Cream Pie — An old-fashioned pie with homemade scratch crust topped with NO-BAKE layers of sweetened cream cheese along with juicy cherry pie filling!! If you like cherry pie, you’re going to LOVE this amped up version!!

Soft Cherry Bread with Cherry-Almond Glaze — An EASY quick bread recipe that’s perfect for Valentine’s Day, Easter, or Mother’s Day! Because you can never have too much pink!

Mini Cherry Oreo Cheesecakes â€“ EASY mini cheesecakes loaded with cherries and an Oreo cookie crust!

Triple Chocolate Cherry Cake — This cake is loaded with juicy cherries and topped with an easy homemade chocolate frosting. I used a few shortcuts in this recipe to save time, but this cake tastes completely homemade! 

Glazed Cherry Pie Bars — The bars are like cherry pie, but easier. There’s a buttery, soft, tender crust topped with cherry pie filling before being baked and glazed.

Glazed Cherry Bonbon Cookies — Soft, buttery, pink cookies with the surprise of a juicy, sweet maraschino cherry in the middle that also helps keep the cookies moist.

Cherry & Cream Cheese Turnovers — The turnovers are so good that people will think you bought them from a local bakery, but they’re so easy, ready in 20 minutes, and you’ll never need to settle for storebought turnovers again.

Originally published on July 24, 2012 and republished on June 19, 2020 with updated text.

About the Author

Welcome to AverieCooks! Here you’ll find fast and easy recipes that taste amazing and are geared for real life. Nothing fussy or complicated, just awesome tasting dishes everyone loves!

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Please note: I have only made the recipe as written, and cannot give advice or predict what will happen if you change something. If you have a question regarding changing, altering, or making substitutions to the recipe, please check out the FAQ page for more info.

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Comments

  1. I was wondering if you’ve tried making these with dehydrated cherries. Costco has the big bags of them that I thought might work in this…what do you think?

    1. I’m sure it would be fine – you may need to reduce baking time by a few mins so there is no natural moisture being released from the (fresh, i.e. wet) cherries if using dried so just keep an eye on it a few mins before the recipe indicates to cook it for. LMK if you try it!

  2. I am making these tomorrow and have a crowd to feed. Can I double the recipe for a 9 by 13 inch pan without a problem? I’m guessing I can, but just wanted to make sure before I have a baking disaster on my hands.

    1. Yes, totally fine to do! Watch the baking time, you may need to extend by a minute or a few mins, but will also depend on how juicy your fruit is to begin with, too. Enjoy and LMK how it goes!

      1. The blondies didn’t quite turn out for me. The flavor from the cherries was amazing, but they were quite greasy with butter seeping out of them everywhere. I’m not sure where I went wrong, maybe since I doubled them? They didn’t seem underbaked at all, just super buttery. Oh, well, try, try again, right?

      2. Well, I can’t vouch for anything that wasn’t made like I made them and since you doubled them, that could have been the issue…maybe the butter ratio in a bigger pan doesn’t require doubling, maybe use 1.5 sticks not 2 whole sticks? Hard to say…I never make them in a bigger pan so I don’t know – but in an 8×8 pan like I make them (and I have a few more recipes coming up that are similar – and I can make this recipe in my sleep) but they are never, ever greasy. Buttery and rich, but not greasy.

  3. Made these last night with choc chips, raspberries & blueberries… Very tasty… But I think it needed a pinch of salt .. Unless I missed that in the ingredients.. Making another batch today,, thanks

    1. I think you did miss it, 1/4 teaspoon (optional) – salt in baked goods is highly individual; I usually list it, but write optional. As with anything, taste your batter and salt (or sugar!) to taste :)

  4. I haven’t had any cherries yet this summer. This is a problem that needs a solution NOW!

  5. Giiiirrrrl, these are right up my alley. Bookmarking now; might well make these for my next Yoga retreat. Baking them for a crowd will keep ME from polishing them off solo ;-)

  6. What amazing blondies! I hesitate to even think of them as blondies because they’re so full of amazing colors and flavors – so beautiful. I’m featuring this post in today’s Food Fetish Friday (with a link-back and attribution). I hope you have no objections and I can’t wait to see what you create next…

  7. I made these the yesterday with frozen blueberries (that I got on super sale: 24oz for $3.88!!) and they were awesome!
    Thank you so much for this recipe! :-D

    1. Nice score$$ on the berries! Now, you totally have me craving this with them! I made it with peaches + white choc chips. SO GOOD

  8. OH! MY! WORD!!!! So I saw this recipe yesterday and thought – hmmm I have everything for them, so I HAD to make them. HOLY COW THESE ARE PHENOMENAL!!! I about burnt the entire inside of my mouth because I could not wait a whole hour to cut them properly… ah.mazing! And now that I can cut them and not scald my mouth – these things are dangerous!!

    THANK YOU for this recipe!!! I am definitely saving this one!!!

    1. So glad they were a big hit – despite the scalded mouth :) The possibilities are endless with what to put in them but the dough-base is a keeper, I agree!

  9. I made these on Tuesday night (yes, the day that you posted them). I had all the ingredients so I figured WHY NOT?! HOLY DELICIOUS. I used a frozen mixed berry mix from Trader Joes. I also slightly under baked them (by accident) but they still tasted great! Boyfriend reprimanded me for baking and said I was going to make him fat. ;)

    1. Glad you gave them a try and yes, I’ve used frozen mixes from TJs (love those things) in these and they always come out great! My hubs says the same thing about all I bake and make :)

    2. I was wondering if you could make these with frozen berries. Thanks for posting your results!

      Did you thaw the berries before you mixed them in?

      1. Yes you can use frozen (bake longer), and no don’t thaw (they’ll bleed less).

  10. I love anything with fresh cherries! These blondies are calling my name! ;)