Cherry Shortcake Squares

Cherry Shortcake Squares

#6 of the treat yo' self challenge

counter cakes chapter

After the disappointment of yesterday's Donut Loaf, I wanted to try something that at least looked highly appealing. This one was definitely a feast for my eyes as I paged through the book. Little mini squares of cake with hearts of cherry? Yes, please! And the simplicity of the recipe was just a bonus for a lazy Sunday afternoon.

I used a new baking pan for this recipe - cooking on a rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment, rather than in sort of traditional baking pan (like an 8x8 or 9x13 classic). The batter seemed so thin as I spread it across the pan, but I decided to trust the author. (Plus, there was no way I could have easily scraped all that batter back out and into a smaller tin!) Then I also learned a new technique: scoring the batter with a toothpick in order to better judge the placement of the cherries on each of the 24 future pieces. It certainly looked promising as it went into the oven...and looked tasty when it came out a little bit later!

Verdict: Yum! Next time I think I would increase the lemon juice to balance the sweetness a bit more, and I would also put less of the cherry "juice" on each piece to make it more visually appealing. But those are pretty picky changes, and overall this was a winner! Hopefully my coworkers appreciate the treat tomorrow.