Cherry Speckled Lemon and Almond Bars

Cherry Speckled Lemon and Almond Bars. The name is very pretty, that's what I think when I first saw this recipe, there's no photo of this cake in the book. So I can only imagine it will look like speckled bits of cherries in the cake, very pretty indeed!  Do my cake looks like it has speckled bits of cherries?  Of course it does, the only thing is .....

.....I speckled it with dried cranberries instead! Did not have any dried cherries in my pantry. Have not seen any dried cherries being sold at the local bakery supplies stores before.  I am in the midst of clearing my pantry, so the last batch of cranberries goes into this cake.  This cake is not as moist as I expect it to be. It is not actually dry either, I think the amount of ground almonds plus the flour is maybe a little bit too much.  Or maybe when I reduce the sugar, it does have some affect on the moistness of this cake. The original amount of sugar is ridiculously at 500gm!

So conclusion : This is not a really bad cake actually, a little more moist to it would make it perfect! Perhaps extra butter can be added! But if you would like to give this a try, here's the recipe :

I'm sharing this at

Cookbook Sundays at Brenda's Canadian Kitchen

Cherry Speckled Lemon and Almond Bars

(adapted from "brownies and bars" by Liz Franklin)

Makes 15

Preparation Time : 1 hour and 10 minutes

You will need a lightly buttered, deep roasting pan or cake tin measuring 20 x 30cm/8 x 12 inches

250gm/9 oz butter

500gm/1 lb 2 oz sugar ( I use 250gm)

4 eggs

200gm/7 oz self-raising flour

200gm/7 oz ground almonds

150gm/5 oz dried cherries

juice and zest of 1 lemon

1 tbsp caster sugar, for sprinkling

Method :

Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4.  

Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.  Add the eggs a little at a time, stirring in between each addition, until the mixture is smooth and all the eggs are incorporated.

Stir in the flour and the ground almonds, and then add the dried cherries, lemon zest and lemon juice, mixing well.  Spoon the mixture into the prepared tin and bake for 40-45 minutes until golden and firm to the touch.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the tin, sprinkle with caster sugar and then cut into bars.

Store in an airtight container.