Cherry Pie Bars

I saw this last summer via the recipecritic and I finally got around to trying them out.  Uh...hello, YUM!  The problem with pies?  The crust to pie ratio.  This fixes that lifelong problem by providing a really sweet, flaky 'crust' to go along with your filling.  I imagine you could use this same basic 'crust' recipe with any flavor of pie, but...cherry pie bars are a great place to start....and I should know.  I've 'worn' a lot of pie on my thighs through the years.

Cherry Pie Bars

PRINT HERE

Ingredient  
Bars:1 c. butter (softened), 2 c. sugar, 4 eggs, 1 t. vanilla, 1/4 t. almond extract, 3 c. flour, 1 t. salt, 21 oz can of cherry pie filling
Glaze: 1 c. powdered sugar, 1/2 t. vanilla, 1/2 t. almond extract, 2 T milk

Instructions
1.  Cream together butter and sugar.  Add the egg, 1 t. vanilla, and 1/4 t. almond extract to the mix.
2.  Add in flour and salt and cream until mixed well.
3.  Grease a 9x13 inch pan and spread 3 c. of the batter into the bottom.
4.  Pour pie filling on batter.  Use a spoon to 'plop' the remaining batter over the pie filling (it'll spread out as it bakes, but there will be gaps where you can see the pie...which I like).
5.  Bake at 350 for 35+ min (until golden brown, and a toothpick comes out clean.
6.  Let it cool, and then mix the glaze ingredients and drizzle over the bars before serving.