I’ve been on a bar kick lately (not to be confused with a ‘barre’ kick… which would be a marginally more sensible choice lol!) and since it happens to coincide with cherry season here in the Okanagan… cherry bars it is! These bars leverage the natural sweetness of the local cherries that are literally falling off the trees in buckets right now in the Okanagan: this is my absolute favourite time of the year! Enjoy these Okanagan Cherry Oat Bars!
When Jillian, my brother Terry and I were young we used to sit in our granny’s cherry tree and eat cherries until our bellies hurt. Her tree had the perfect limb to sit on, it’s one of my favourite memories of growing up in the Okanagan: I want Max and Charlie to have those same memories.
Of course, when there’s cherry overload (again, no complaints), a gal needs to find a home for them and these bars are the perfect solution!
How To Store Cherries
I’m so proud of where I live and the gorgeous food that we grow here. Please come visit if you can, but if you can’t, try to at least pick up some of your local fruit stand or farmers market if you can find it locally (just look for the sticker or package). Here are a couple of cherry picking and storage tips:
- Store refrigerated and unwashed for several days
- Choose plump, bright-coloured fruits; avoid soft cherries
- To maintain optimum flavour and texture, keep cherries chilled
- Forget about regular ice cubes: freeze some cherries to use instead of ice cubes in the beverage of your choice
Health Benefits of Cherries
Cherries are a good source of fibre, vitamin C, folic acid and minerals, including potassium, calcium. One cup of cherries has about 90 calories in it if you’re counting. They are also a source of antioxidants, anthoycyanins and cyanidin, which may help the body fight inflammation in conditions such as arthritis. They have also been studied for their ability to reduce muscle pain and stress after a hard work out: try throwing them in your next smoothie after hitting the gym!
Lucky for you, I have so many cherry recipes! See a roundup of my Favourite Cherry Recipes for all the inspo.
I recommend making these bars in advance to make them easier to cut (and who doesn’t like something that can be made in advance, might I ask?). In fact, you can make them and freeze them for up to a month in a sealed container: they store well in a covered container at room temperature for 2-3 days. They make a great snack or a dessert… we even topped them with a tiny scoop of vanilla ice cream (you can use dairy-free of course) as a fancy cherry-crisp type of dessert.
Okanagan Cherry Oat Bars
Okanagan Cherry Oat Bars (gluten-free & vegan option)
Ingredients
For the Filling
- 8 c. fresh pitted and halved cherries
- 1/4 c. sugar
- ¼ cup plus 3 tablespoons water divided
- 3 tablespoons corn starch
For the Topping
- 1 cup old fashioned oats
- ¾ cup sliced almonds
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup melted butter, vegan butter or coconut oil
- 1/4 cup oat flour
- 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
- Pinch salt
For the Base
- 1 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
- 3 cups large flake oats
- 1/2 cup oat flour
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 2/3 cup melted butter, vegan butter or coconut oil
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 cup honey, maple syrup or brown rice syrup
Instructions
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Combine the cherries, sugar and ¼ cup of water in a medium pot and bring to a simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the cherries have softened, about 15 minutes.
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Mix the corn starch and water in a small glass and slowly pour it into the cherries, stirring constantly. Cook for an additional 2-3 minutes and remove from the heat.
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Preheat the oven to 350 F and line a greased 9x13” pan with parchment paper.
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Prepare the topping by combining all of the ingredients together in a medium bowl and stirring to combine. Set aside.
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Place all of the base ingredients in a food processor and process until the mixture sticks together, about 30-45 seconds.
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Press the mixture in the bottom of the prepared pan to form an even, packed layer: I use the bottom of a flat glass cup to do this.
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Bake the base for 8 minutes and remove from the oven.
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Pour the cherries on top of the base and smooth to even. Sprinkle the prepared topping evenly on top of the base and bake until the top is lightly browned, approximately 35-45 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool completely. Best if refrigerated before cutting.
Can we freeze these?
These look delicious! Thank you for sharing!!! 😍
Thanks Anne and yes you can freeze them!
They look so good! Do you have a secret for pitting the cherries?
Hi Pat, I’m afraid it’s a bit of elbow grease or a cherry pitter that you fix to your counter works really well – not expensive and well worth the effort if you often have access to fresh cherries!
They sure do look delicious, and bonus, they are gluten free! Woohoo! 🙂
Yes!!!! I hope you enjoy them Alayne!
Looks amazing! Will they work with any other berry? I have blueberries on hand and would love to make it right away.
Hey! They should work, but I haven’t tested so you may need to adjust the cornstarch with blueberries! xx Tori
Can I use regular flour instead of oat flour?
Curious, can you use regular flour?
and – can you substitute cherries for any berry ?
Hi Jo, yes you can (to both questions!). Some berries may be juicier than others, but something like blueberries should give you a similar result. Thanks!
8 cups of cherries?????
Yes I know it’s a lot but they cook down and give the bars a really nice dose of cherries!
Looks delicious. Cherries is missing after the 8 cups fresh and pitted??
Mmm these are amazing! I picked up some cherries in NOTL last weekend and I’m going to try them next with Niagara peaches! It is the end of cherry season here so I halved the recipe but it still turned out sooooo well! Thanks as always for the great recipes and inspiration!
If I used frozen cherries, would I up the amount of cornstarch perhaps?
Hi Sam. I think you could probably get away with the same amount if you cook down the cherries to evaporate the extra water though I haven’t tried it so can’t say for sure! It wouldn’t hurt to increase the corn starch by a tablespoon or two if you’re in doubt!
Can I use sour cherries and just increase the amount of sugar? Maybe double?
Hi Emily! Good question… I think so. You may even be able to get away with the sour cherries if you don’t like a very sweet bar. I would love to hear if you try!!! Take care, Tori
I don’t have a food processor…can I still make these? I’m crazy for cherries…and your recipes!!!
Hi Jen! I suspect that you could just press it all into a pan or try to blend it in a blender if you have one… I haven’t tried but would love to hear if you give it a whirl! Thanks so much for following along!
I don’t have a food processor either, so I threw the coconut and oats into a blender, then added the remaining ingredients afterwards and it turned out perfectly! 🙂
That’s really great to know thank you Tori! Great name by the way;)
These look so delicious and loved your live demo! Can’t wait to try them!
P.S. You are such a natural with the camera, hope to see more (maybe a YouTube or better yet your own show 😉) !!
Thank you Janice!!! You’re so sweet I really appreciate it!! Have a wonderful day, Tori
Tori, I made this with the sour cherries and it was delicious! I put in 3/4 cup of sugar and it seems like a good amount. Sweet but a little tart still. Thanks for the recipe!
Thanks for the feedback Emily! I really appreciate you taking the time to share this! Have an awesome day:)
Oh my! Tori, these were AH-MAZING! They are perfect and boutique bakery quality. I had to have 2 while cutting them! Made a few minor substitutes using what I had in my pantry (almond flour for the oat flour, coconut sugar for white sugar) but it did not affect the taste one bit. Going to try plums in them when they are ready. Thank you for sharing this recipe 🙂 ox
Did you sub in the almond flour at a 1:1 ratio for the oat flour?
Hi Laurie yes you could do that!
These are very tasty, but the topping is so crumbly they can’t be eaten out of hand. A definite spoon or knife and fork treat.
Thanks for the feedback Carolyn! Perhaps I will try to tweak it so it can be both eaten by hand or a fork!
Take care, Tori