Nutty Cherry Squares

Yesterday I was craving something sweet, but I am trying to cut back on the refined sugar as much as I can. I don't eat a lot of of refined sugar, but when I can I like to swap it out for natural sugars. I searched on Pinterest and I found a recipe that looked like it would turn out. 

What was a bonus for this recipe is that it is actually gluten free and dairy free. Whenever I hear those things though, I sometimes go "this is not going to taste good". I have had many bad experiences with testing out gluten free flours and dairy free things, especially for desserts. This one though, turned out great and we have gobbled up half the pan already. With my recent 100% diagnoses for Endometriosis and PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) a lot of medical professionals recommend eating a anti inflammatory diet. So I am making swaps here and there for me. This is one that is low on the inflammatory scale.  

Nutty Cherry Squares

Ingredients:

Base Layer
1 cup of almond flour
1 cup, plus 2 tablespoons of coconut flour
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1 tablespoon of vanilla extract
1/3 cup of honey, melted
1/3 cup of coconut oil, melted

Cherry Layer
1 1/2 cups of cherry jam
1 tablespoon of tapioca flour

Crumb Topping
1/4 cup of slivered almonds
1/2 cup of semi sweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup of reserved base layer

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F, line an 8 by 8 inch pan with parchment paper. 

In a bowl mix together all the ingredients for the base layer. Make sure that it is evenly mixed, I got my hands in there and made sure there were no dry spots. Reserve 1/4 cup of the mixture for the top, take the rest and press into the bottom of the prepared pan. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or until lightly golden brown. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes. 

In a small bowl, mix together the cherry jam and tapioca flour. Pour over the previously cooked base layer. Evenly distribute the reserved bottom mixture, as well as the chocolate chips and slivered almonds. 

Bake in the oven for 20 minutes. Once done remove from the oven and allow the pan to cool for 30 minutes. Remove the parchment paper from the pan (with the squares on it) and then cut into even portions. If there are any left, then you can store them in the fridge in an air tight container.

Nutty Cherry Squares

I have adapted this recipe from Jay's Baking Me Crazy, if you really want to make them Vegan, then swap out the honey for maple syrup. I also used my homemade jam for this so it has sugar in it. You could follow the original recipe to make your own sauce. If you don't want to make your own then you can search for a no added sugar jam. This would be great with any kind of jam or fruit preserve. 

These were so good, my husband and kids even liked them. My daughter has a thing about eating actual nuts (peanut butter and Nutella doesn't count), so she didn't even ask about the almonds. So win for me!

Happy Baking!
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