Blackberry Pie Bars

I love berries of every kind. I think I could live off of them. I also love pie and so when I saw this recipe on sisterscafe.blogspot.com I had to try it...HAD to. Let me tell you I was not disappointed. Thick and chewy crust + creamy berry layer = heaven (can you her the angels singing praise?) I did half the recipe in order to save me waistline and put it in a 9x9 inch pan instead and it worked great! So go try these now!!!

Blackberry Pie Bars

Crust & Topping:
3 cups flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups chilled butter

Fruit Filling:
4 large eggs
2 cups sugar
1 cup sour cream
3/4 cup all purpose flour
Pinch of salt
2 (16-ounce) packages frozen blackberries, defrosted and drained

Crust and topping: Preheat the oven to 350. Grease a 9x13-inch baking pan. Combine the flour, sugar and salt in a very large bowl. Cut butter into the flour mixture using a pastry cutter. Continue until the butter is evenly distributed, but the mixture is still crumbly (as you would a pie crust). (I used a food processor and it is much easier. Who even invented a pastry cutter- lamest kitchen tool ever)
Reserve 1 1/2 cups of the crumb mixture for the topping. Press the remaining crumbs into the bottom of the prepared pan. Bake the crust for 15-20 minutes, or until it is golden brown. Cool for at least 10 minutes.

Filling: Whisk the eggs and sugar together in a large bowl, then add the sour cream, flour and salt. Gently fold in the blackberries. Spoon the mixture evenly over the crust. Sprinkle the reserved crumbs evenly over the top. Bake for 45 to 55 minutes, or until the crust is lightly browned. Cool for at least 1 hour before cutting. Makes approximately 2 dozen bars.