Makeover Cherry Coconut Bars

I made Buppy take most of these bad boys to work with him this morning, and if it's any indication of how good they are, here's what one of his coworkers had to say about them: "I'm a grumpy old bastard and hate everything in the world except, apparently, Bugaboo's cherry coconut bars." Granted he didn't refer to me as Bugaboo, but everything else is verbatim. They were called "extraordinary." You should definitely try them on for size.

Makeover Cherry Coconut Bars
Taste of Home's Light & Tasty Annual Recipes 2005

Crust:
3/4 c. all-purpose flour
3 Tbsp. confectioners' sugar
3 Tbsp. cold butter
Filling:
1 egg
2 egg whites
1 c. sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 c. quartered maraschino cherries
1/3 c. chopped walnuts
1/3 c. flaked coconut

In a food processor, place flour and confectioners' sugar; cover and process until blended. Add butter; cover and pulse 15 times or until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Press into a 9-inch square baking pan coated with nonstick cooking spray. Bake at 350F for 12-15 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool on a wire rack.

For filling, combine the egg, egg whites, sugar and vanilla in a bowl. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt in a separate bowl; add the egg mixture. Stir in the cherries, nuts and coconut. Spread over crust. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until firm. Cool on a wire rack. Cut into bars. Refrigerate leftovers.

I actually had to use an 8"x 8" square baking dish because that was the closest I had to a 9" square one. They still turned out great. Buppy and I agreed that they're not as "cherry" as we'd anticipated, but they're still super yummy. And the fact that they're light & tasty ---- sweet!