Cranberry Cream Cheese Bars
These Cranberry bars are going to be a holiday staple in your home! They are dense, flavorful, and just the right amount of sweet. Your friends and family will fall in love with these bars!
Ingredients
Cranberry bar
- 1 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 2 sticks butter (1 cup) room temperature
- 1 whole egg
- 2 egg yokes (discard whites)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp orange zest
- 1 tsp fresh grated ginger
- 2 tbsp fresh squeezed orange juice
- 2 cups Bob's Red Mill Organic White Flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 cup dried, sweetened cranberries chopped
- 3 ounce white chocolate bar chopped
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 2 sticks butter (1 cup) room temperature
- 8 ounces cream cheese cold from fridge
- 2 Tbsp fresh squeezed orange juice
- 1 tsp orange zest
- 1/4 tsp grated ginger
- 2 tsp vanilla
- 4 cups powdered sugar
Toppings
- 2 ounces white chocolate bar chopped
- 3/4 cup dried, sweetened cranberries chopped
- 2 tbsp
Bob's Red Mill Decorative Sparkling Sugar
Chocolate drizzle
- 1/2 cup white chocolate chips
Instructions
Cranberry Bars
- Preheat oven to 350. Line a 9X13 pan with parchment paper.
- In large bowl, cream together brown sugar and butter. Mix until creamy. Add in whole egg, two egg yokes, and vanilla. Mix until incorporated.
- Combine orange zest, ginger, and orange juice. Slowly add in Bob's Redmill flour, salt, and baking powder.
- Once well mixed, add chopped cranberries and white chocolate. Stir until combined.
- Place dough in center of parchment lined pan, and taking a butter rubbed piece of parchment, place over dough and push until flat and even in pan.
- Bake at 350 for 25 minutes, checking often. These won't raise much and that's good. We want a dense, heavy bar. Look for the edges to start browning slightly to gauge when done.
- Let cool completly before frosting. If you place cream cheese frosting on a warm bar it will just melt and slide right off.
Cream Cheese Frosting
- It's very important here to make sure to use the brick cream cheese, and not one out of a tub. The ones in tubs have a higher water content because they are made for spreading easily, and it will make your frosting not thicken properly.
- Place butter in bowl and whip until all lumps are gone. If you skip this step your frosting will have butter chunks in it. Don't skip this step. ;)
- Add in cold cream cheese and whip until light and fluffy. Add in orange, ginger, and vanilla, stir. Slowly sift in powdered sugar. Frost bars and save extra for spooning out of the fridge in the middle of the night. Oh no . . . is that just me?
Finish with topping and white chocoalte drizzle
- Sprinkle dried cranberries and white chocolate over frosted bars.
- Take 1/2 cup of white chocolate chips, and microwave for 10 to 15 seconds at a time, stiring in beween. Once melted, drizzle over frosting and let harden. Cut up into squares, then half into triangles, and enjoy!