Today is National Pistachio Day, though by the time you see this post it's likely the "holiday" will have come and gone. Luckily Pistachio Cherry Chocolate Chip Bars are good any day -- at least if you don't have a nut allergy. Then again, you could always just make them as Cherry Chocolate Chip Bars.
This recipe was given to me many years ago by my friend Josie, who most likely created it for a recipe contest. As the name implies, Pistachio Cherry Chocolate Chip Bars are chocolate chip bars stuffed with all of those things.
Pistachio Cherry Chocolate Chip Bar Dough
They're a slightly more sophisticated and less sweet version of Chocolate Chip Bars, with the "less sweet" part being surprising considering how much chocolate they have. You can use more or less chocolate to taste. One ingredient I've recently incorporated is pistachio extract. It's a nice little flavor enhancer, but the bars are just fine with vanilla-only or a dash of almond extract. In fact I think the almond might even go better with the cherries.
And finally, this recipe is designed for a 9 inch square pan so if you want to double it, use a 15x10 inch pan. If you use a 9x13 inch pan, the bars will be thicker and will take longer to bake.
Avoiding Dryness
These bars recently got feedback that they were a little dry. This surprised me because they've always been one of my favorite chewy cookie bars. They are definitely meant to be dense and loaded with mix-ins, but not dry. After revisiting the recipe, I think the issue may come down to either flour measurement or bake time. I've always made them using 190 grams of flour by weight. Accidentally adding even a few extra tablespoons of flour (or a dryer flour) could make the bars less moist.
To get to the bottom of the issue, I made a batch for testing. Rather than bake at 350 for 30 minutes, I dropped the heat to 325F for a low and slow bake. This should help if anyone is having issues with overbaking. Low and slow, and keep checking on them. The dough starts out slightly dry, but should bake into reasonably moist cookie bars loaded with chocolate, cherries and nuts. I increased the amount of chocolate in the recipe from ⅔ to 1 cup, so that should help too.
Chocolate Almond Variation
This recipe is from my friend Josie. We've been making the pistachio version since about 2012, but I recently saw a similar recipe in a cookie book for a chocolate-almond version. To make the chocolate almond version, use almonds instead of pistachios and Maraschino cherries in place of dried cherries. Add 2 tablespoons of cocoa powder to the dry mixture and 1 tablespoon of Maraschino cherry juice to the batter.
Recipe
Pistachio Cherry Chocolate Chip Bars
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour** (190 grams)
- ⅜ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt, Morton kosher
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened (114 grams)
- ½ cup light brown sugar (100 grams)
- ½ cup granulated sugar (100 grams)
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon pistachio or almond extract optional
- 1 large egg (50 grams)
- 1 cup semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips
- ⅔ cup dried cherries
- ⅔ cup roasted unsalted pistachio nuts
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line an 8-inch square metal pan with nonstick foil. For thinner bars, use a 9-inch square pan.
- In a bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda and salt.
- In a mixing bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the softened butter and both sugars until creamy. Beat in extracts and egg.
- Add the flour mixture and stir by hand until thoroughly blended, then stir in the chocolate chips, dried cherries and pistachio nuts.
- Spread the mixture as evenly as possible in the pan and bake at 325F until golden and internal temperature registers 200F or slightly over. Check them at 30 minutes. An 8-inch pan will probably bake around 40 minutes while a 9-inch pan should be done around 30.
- Let cool completely in the pan, then lift from pan by grasping foil. Cut into squares.
Anna says
I've baked these again and they are not dry, but they could potentially be dry if overbaked or if flour mis-measured. To make sure no one ends up with dry bars, I've reduced the heat from 350F to 325F. Check the bars at 30 minutes, but it will probably take up to 35 if you stick with the 9-inch square pan. Using an 8-inch square pan will give you thicker bars with even less potential for dryness, so you can try an 8-inch and bake longer. These are great bars.
Anna says
Thanks so much for trying the recipe and for the feedback. These bars are definitely very loaded with mix-ins, so texture can vary depending on how much flour is used and how long they bake. I’ve had the best results keeping the bake time on the shorter side so the centers stay soft and chewy. I’m also updating the recipe notes with a slightly lower flour amount by weight for a softer texture. Really appreciate you taking the time to comment.
Gitzy says
this recipe did not quite work for me. the proportions of the ingredients to liquid do not seem quite right. the dough was quite dense and the bars are very heavy and a bit tough. seems like there's great potential though.
GLORIA says
I love pistachios, but I have never baked with them or cherries. These bars are attractive.
Anna says
Sonya, it's pretty good. I need to use it in a few more things.
Sonya says
Oooh, I've never heard of pistachio extract - that sounds GOOD!