Cranberry Bliss Barshave Blondie Baselayer, which is generously speckled with white chocolate chunks and dried cranberries, then topped with orange-flavored cream cheese frosting, sprinkled with more cranberries white chocolate drizzle.
Cranberry Bliss Baris one of those treats that is synonymous with the holiday season in our house. They’re made with a blondie base layer, which is generously speckled with white chocolate chunks and dried cranberries, then topped with orange flavored cream cheese frosting, sprinkled with more cranberries and lastly, drizzled with more white chocolate. A simple treat, but oh so dangerous! It’s just too easy to eat too many, way too fast!
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My friend has shared the recipe for these bars with me over 8 years ago and over the years I have made lots and lots of batches of these Cranberry Bliss Bars.As I have been making them I realized that I make them with some deviations from that original recipe and this time I decided to make a video (my second one now, WHOOHOO!!) of the recipe, just the way I like to make them.
The changes that I made with these were, to bake them in a tad smaller baking sheet, which makes the bars a little thicker. Also, I have increased the cream cheese amount and decreased the powdered sugar amount in the frosting. This makes the frosting/glaze take a little longer to become not tacky.
So for me, if I bake them today, they’re the best flavor and texture profile only tomorrow, which makes it a perfect make-ahead treat. (I did not wait until next day to take pictures, that’s why they’re not as perfectly cut as they would’ve been next day, so forgive me for that 😀 ).
Also, I have soaked the cranberries in warm water for just a little. This makes them plumper, which not only makes the bars better but also prolongs the freshness of the bars since they give off that moisture as the bars sit.
Go on, watch the video and let me know what you think! This is my second video and as I work, I am starting to enjoy this video process more and more. Two down, millions more to go 😀
If you like this recipe, check out this Cranberry Bliss Coffee Cake as well!
Give these other Desserts a try:
- Cheesecake Fold Cookies – Simple cookies with a cheesecake center.
- Poppy seed Pastry Buns – The best poppy seed dessert.
- Lemon Madelines – Great lemon cookies.
Cranberry Bliss Bars Recipe (VIDEO)
4.91 from 10 votes
Cranberry Bliss Bar- Blondie base layer, which is generously speckled with white chocolate chunks and dried cranberries, then topped with orange flavored cream cheese frosting, sprinkled with more cranberries white chocolate drizzle.
Author: Marina | Let the Baking Begin!
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: cranberry bliss bar, starbucks copycat
Calories: 298 kcal
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes
Servings: 18 pcs
Ingredients
Blondie Base
- 6 ozbutter, unsalted, softened
- ½tspsalt
- 1¼cuppacked brown sugar
- 1½cupflour
- 3eggs
- ½t.sp. baking powder
- 1tspground ginger OR 2 Tb minced crystallized ginger OR 1 teaspoon finely shredded fresh ginger
- 1½tspvanilla extract
- 1cupscranberriessoaked in warm water for 20 minutes, then thoroughly dried with paper towel
- 4oz.white chocolate barchopped
For decoration
- ½cupcraisinsdried cranberries, soaked in warm water for 20 minutes, then thoroughly dried with paper towel
- 2ozwhite chocolate chips or white chocolate barchopped
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 6ozcream cheese
- 1tspvanilla extract
- 1cupspowdered sugar
- 4tsplemon juiceabout 1 lemon
- 1tsporange extract or 1 Tbsp of orange zest
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350F with the rack in the middle. Line a 9x13 inch baking pan with foil or parchment paper. Set aside.
Cream together 1 1/4 cups brown sugar, 1/2 tsp salt & 3/4 cup butter until smooth. Add eggs & vanilla extract, one egg at a time creaming the mixture in between. Add 1 tsp ground ginger, 1 1/2 cups flour & 1/2 tsp baking powder and mix everything together. Add 1 cup dried cranberries & 4 oz of chopped white chocolate and fold them in.
Using wet hands or wet spatula spread the batter evenly in a 9"x13" inch baking pan.
Bake for about 15 minutes or until the middle is puffed up and baked through. I like my bars to be more on the goey side (like a good chocolate chip cookie) so I do not bake the base layer too much. Do not overbake or the bars will be very dry. Allow to cool.
How to make the frosting:
Add 6 oz of cream cheese, 1 cup powdered sugar, 4 tsp lemon juice & 1 tsp vanilla extract to a bowl of a mixer. Using a beater or a whip attachment beat/whip everything together until creamy, about 3 minutes.
Melt the White Chocolate
Place the white chocolate in a cup and microwave for about 40-50 seconds in 7-8 increments stirring with a spoon in between, until it just starts to melt. Continue stirring until all chocolate is melted. Do not overheat the white chocolate or it will turn hard and become unusable.
Assemble
Spread the cream cheese frosting over the cooled down crust. Sprinkle the dried cranberries on top. Drizzle melted white chocolate on top using a fork. Allow the bars to set until the top of the cream cheese frosting is not sticky to the touch, several hours or next day. This will make it easier to cut the bars.
Trim the ends of the bars, for even edges. Cut the bars into squares, then cut the squares diagonally into triangles. Store at room temperature or in the refrigerator.
Nutrition Facts
Cranberry Bliss Bars Recipe (VIDEO)
Amount Per Serving
Calories 298Calories from Fat 126
% Daily Value*
Fat 14g22%
Saturated Fat 8g50%
Cholesterol 59mg20%
Sodium 186mg8%
Potassium 91mg3%
Carbohydrates 39g13%
Sugar 29g32%
Protein 3g6%
Vitamin A 405IU8%
Vitamin C 1.2mg1%
Calcium 50mg5%
Iron 0.8mg4%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
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Enjoy!
If you would like to see my other Cranberry Bliss Recipes CLICK pictures below.
