Cherry Streusel Bars

Going through a wonderful cookie book, I came across this recipe. It looked great and was also quick and easy, another bar type cookie. But it called for almond paste. I didn't have any on hand, so I went to the store looking for some.

Well, I found the almond paste in a tube and guess what! It had WHEAT in it! Great! Now what! I remember seeing a recipe for homemade almond paste somewhere.

Back home, I frantically searched through my stack of magazines where I was sure I had seen it. Success! I made up a batch and used it in this recipe. Now, I can make almond paste any time I want and not have to worry whether what I buy has wheat in it or not!

• 3/4 cup gluten free flour blend
• 1/4 cup coconut flour
• 1/2 cup cornstarch
• 1 1/2 tsp xanthum gum
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup cold butter, cubed (or dairy free margarine)
• 1/3 cup almond paste
• 1/4 tsp. gluten free almond extract
• 1 can cherry pie filling ( or you can make your own, see below)
• 1/2 cup sliced almonds

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

   Place the first 8 ingredients in the bowl of a food processor and pulse a few times to combine. Add the butter, almond paste and extract, pulse until the mixture looks sandy. Remove 1 cup of this for a streusel topping. Spread the rest of the mixture in a 9" square pan that has been coated with non-stick cooking spray. Bake for 15-18 minutes or until the edges just begin to brown. Remove from the oven and set aside. Make your own pie filling or heat up the purchased pie filling in the microwave until  hot. Spread over the baked crust. Sprinkle the reserved streusel and the sliced almonds over the top and then bake for another 30 minutes or until the filling is bubbly and the topping is light brown. Remove and allow to cool completely before cutting into bars. Makes 16-20 bars.

 Home Made Cherry Filling

• 1 1/2 cups frozen tart cherries
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 3 TB water
• 2 TB cornstarch
• 1 TB lemon juice
• 1 TB butter (or dairy free margarine)
• Pinch of salt

Simmer all the filling ingredients together in a saucepan until the cherry filling thickens and looks like pie filling. Stir often while cooking so it does not burn. This should take about 8 minutes.