Pretty in pink

Maraschino Cherry Bars
Cookies 1,001 Mouthwatering Recipes From Around the World Copyright 2004

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
¾ cup (1 ½ sticks) butter, softened
½ cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon maraschino syrup (from a jar of maraschino cherries)
½ cup finely chopped maraschino cherries
Maraschino Frosting

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 13x9-inch baking pan. (I think this is better suited to a 11x7-inch baking dish). Sift the flour and salt into a medium bowl. Beat the butter, brown sugar, and maraschino cherry syrup in a large bowl with an electric mixer at high speed until creamy. Mix in the dry ingredients and cherries until well blended. Spread the mixture evenly in the baking pan. Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool completely in the pan. If desired, spread the frosting over, Cut into bars.

Maraschino Frosting (This will make way more than you need)
4 cups confectioners’ sugar
¼ cup (1/2 stick) butter, softened
½ cup milk
2 tablespoons maraschino cherry syrup
16 maraschino cherries, finely chopped

Beat the confectioners’ sugar, butter, and milk in a large bowl with an electric mixer at high speed until smooth. (**I wouldn't add the milk all at once. Safer to blend everything else then add the milk until you reach the right consistency. **)Beat in the cherry syrup and cherries until well blended.
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I've had a jar of cherries in the cupboard for quite some time that I wanted to use in something. There are plenty of recipes that use maraschino cherries but this one was the least labor intensive and it didn't require any other special ingredients.

This is basically a shortbread, which I'm generally not crazy about. The frosting gave these a more personally pleasing texture for me (it softened the bars slightly). They are VERY sweet - don't cut them too large. They didn't blow me away right off the bat but everyone seemed to love them - they got a few 'extra' comments from the work crew and disappeared quickly. I was sorry to see the last one go since they really grew on me, but I'm still not sure if I would make them again. When it comes to sweets, I generally only remake the things that knock my socks off. As much as everyone enjoyed these, I don't think these fell into that category for me, since, like I already mentioned, I'm just not a huge shortbread fan. I could maybe see making them again if I needed a pink treat someday - I loved the color.