After picking up a bunch of cherries this past week, I wanted to bake them into something richly chocolate. I didn’t want to try a new recipe though and I wanted to use ingredients that were already in my house.
I remembered my childhood brownie recipe as being very simple and all made in a single pot. This is a simple one-pot brownie recipe that never disappoints.
As proven by my own past, even a child can make these. I’ve converted the original recipe to make it gluten free and I have listed both versions below.
The cherries kept the brownies incredibly moist. The bars almost begged for a quick reheat with ice cream on top. I’ve made these twice now and served them both plain and with ice cream on top. I really loved these brownies!
Everyone who tasted these brownies loved them as well and commented on the unexpected and subtle flavor of the fresh cherries.
Check out all of the Gluten Free Dessert Recipes on this website! And for another cherry favorite, Black Forest Cake is a must make dessert as well.
Chocolate Cherry Almond Brownies
Ingredients
- ½ cup butter
- 2½ cups chocolate chips, divided (reserve ½ cup)
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- ½ cup sugar
- 4 eggs
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- 1 cup all-purpose flour*
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¾ cup fresh cherries, pitted and chopped about 1½ cups whole fresh cherries
- ½ cup sliced almonds
*Gluten-Free Alternative
- ⅔ cup brown rice flour
- ⅓ cup potato starch
- 1 teaspoon xanthan gum
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line a 9×13 pan with parchment paper or line it with foil and grease it very well with butter.
- Melt the butter in a medium size saucepan, then add 2 cups chocolate chips and stir with a wooden spoon until they are melted. Remove from the heat, add the brown and white sugars and stir to combine.
- Add the almond extract and the eggs, one at a time, stirring between each addition. When the mixture is smooth and shiny, slowly add the flour and salt to the mixture in the saucepan. Stir until well combined.
- Add the chopped cherries and the remaining ½ cup chocolate chips. Spread the mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan and then sprinkle the top with the almonds.
- Bake for 28-32 minutes until an inserted toothpick shows moist crumbs. Let the bars cool completely before slicing. Enjoy!
Nutrition
{originally published 6/28/12 – recipe notes and photos updated 5/27/21}
Pam says
Oh my gosh, these sound wonderful!!! I love cherries and chocolate!
Tricia @ saving room for dessert says
Oh me oh my! These look wonderful. Silly me, I'm just popping those cherries in my mouth and haven't baked a thing with them! You hit the spot with these. Great one Mary!
Jenn says
Cherries and chocolate are just meant to be to together!!!
Sue/the view from great island says
You've managed to push all my buttons with this one. Cherries, almond, and chocolate. I think you are a genius for adding the fresh cherries to brownies.
Athena @ Lifes Abundant Adventures says
YUM!!
Mallory says
Brownies!!! I love your thought process, buy cherries and make something rich and chocolately. That's exactly what I would do.
Spencer says
Gluten free or not it looks absolutely delicious!
Kim Honeycutt says
I agree with the others. Chocolate…Cherries…Almonds… Awesome!! Pinned and shared!
aconservativerebel says
I made these today – the first gluten free baking that hasn't had a gritty texture!! Woohoo! These are seriously amazing!! I did use canned cherries as I didn't have any fresh and they still came out fantastically. 🙂 Saved for future use!!