Cranberry bars are the perfect dessert or snack for the holiday season featuring beautifully tart cranberries, with a shortbread crust that has a soft and delicious crumb. This is the ideal way to use up all the fresh cranberries you have at home for something your family will absolutely love!
These cookies are perfectly balanced with a tart cranberry sauce, rich and creamy cream cheese filling, and an airy and soft shortbread bar that fit together beautifully.
There's no treat like cranberries for Christmas! Couple that with sweet cream cheese and you've really got something that’s truly unforgettable. Plus, they not only have an incredible flavor but they’re also super easy to make at home.
With a handful of pantry staple ingredients, you’ll have the most delicious holiday dessert you’ve ever tried. Not only will your family love it, but they’re going to gobble it all down within minutes!
Want to learn how to make these delicious Cranberry bars? Then keep on reading!
Table of Contents
What are Cranberry Bars?
Cranberry bars are delicious cookie bars that are tangy and sweet and feature a delicious layer of cranberries between soft and crumbly shortbread crust.
Having the best cranberry bars is all about the perfect homemade cranberry sauce! My recipe not only features that, but the flavors are incredible and blend perfectly with the cheesecake filling.
And the shortbread crust is soft and delicious, and just melts in your mouth. You’ll love how you can use fresh cranberries and turn this into this mouthwatering dessert that’s truly ideal for the holidays, especially Christmas.
In fact, they’re so good it’s going to be difficult to eat just one! So go ahead and color your Christmas holiday table with this delicious treat. It’s so good it’ll make Starbucks jealous! Not only are they tastier when homemade, but they look beautiful too.
Are Cranberry Bars Healthy for You?
Yes, they absolutely are! Not only are these delicious little treats absolutely tasty, but they are packed with nutrients!
Cranberries are low in calories and fat and are packed with vitamins and minerals to give you a dessert that’s incredibly nutritious.
A cup of cranberries provides approximately 25% of your recommended daily amount for Vitamin C. It also includes vitamin K, iron, calcium, potassium, and manganese.
But if you thought that’s all, it still isn’t! These little holiday berries are also a great source of antioxidants and help prevent illnesses such as urinary tract infections, reduce the risk of heart disease, and even help lower cholesterol.
What You Need to Make Cranberry Bars at Home
If you’re convinced that you want to make these at home, you’ll be happy to know that you only need pantry staple ingredients to make them! Here’s everything you’ll need:
For the Homemade Cranberry Sauce:
- Cranberries: First of all, we’ll need some delicious cranberries to make these tasty treats! Go for fresh cranberries as that’s how you’ll get that perfect, quintessential holiday flavor in these cranberry bars!
- Sugar: We’ll also need some simple white sugar to make our cranberry sauce. Not only will it help sweeten them, but it’ll also bring out all the juices to make the perfect cranberry sauce.
- Water: You’ll also need some water to add to the sauce to get the right consistency.
For the Cream Cheese Filling:
- Cream cheese: For our delicious cream cheese filling, we first of all obviously need some cream cheese! Make sure it’s softened for the right texture and consistency.
- Sugar: To get the perfect level of sweetness, we’ll also be using some white sugar in our recipe.
- Eggs: You’ll also need an egg at room temperature that’ll not only add richness, but also flavor to your tasty filling.
- Cream: We’ll also need some heavy whipping cream that’ll give us the most incredibly creamy and delicious consistency to the cream cheese filling.
For the Shortbread:
- Flour: To make our tasty shortbread for these cranberry bars we’ll, first of all, need some basic all-purpose flour.
- Cornstarch: You’ll also need some cornstarch as it’ll give you a light and airy cookie bar that’ll go perfectly with the rich and tart flavors of the cranberry sauce and cream cheese filling for perfectly balanced cookies.
- Salt: We’ll also need a little sea salt or kosher salt to help balance everything even more.
- Butter: You’ll also need some unsalted butter for the bars as they’ll give the perfect soft texture and also add a beautiful flavor to the shortbread layer. So make sure you choose a good quality butter.
- Sugar: We’ll also need some brown sugar to sweeten the shortbread layer. Brown sugar, instead of white sugar, adds a deeper flavor that goes well with the light, tart flavors in the other layers.
- Vanilla extract: To help bring it all together, we’ll also be using some vanilla extract in this recipe.
How to Make Cranberry Bars at Home (Step-by-Step)
Making these delicious treats is easier than you think! Here’s what you’ll need to do step by step:
How to Make Cranberry Sauce
Let’s start by first making our tart cranberry filling sauce. It tastes like jam but even better! To make it, start by adding fresh cranberries, water, and sugar into a small saucepan.
Place the saucepan on the stove and stir constantly it starts to boil. Then reduce the heat to low, and let it simmer for 5 minutes, stirring it from time to time.
Once done, remove it from the stove and set it aside to cool.
How to Make Cream Cheese Filling
Time to make our cream cheese filling. Place cream cheese and sugar into a large bowl. Beat on high for 2-3 minutes or until well combined. Then add egg and mix it again for 2 minutes.
Now add heavy whipping cream and beat it for 2 minutes until it’s all well combined. Place the bowl in the fridge until you are ready for it. The cream will become a little thicker and make it easier to coat the cranberry sauce over it.
How to Make Shortbread Dough
Now let’s make the shortbread dough to bring all our layers together in the end! To do this, start by beating softened butter on high speed for 3 minutes or until it turns creamy. Scrape down the dough on the sides of the mixing bowl in between mixing.
Now add brown sugar and beat for a couple of minutes until combined. Scrape the sides of the mixer bowl again and then beat again for a minute.
Then add vanilla extract and beat once more for another minute. Next, sift in the flour, and add cornstarch and salt. Mix until all are well incorporated.
Pinch off ¼ of the dough, shape it into a disk, cover with plastic wrap and place it in the freezer to chill for shredding.
How to Assemble Cranberry Bars
Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a 12 x 9-inch baking dish with parchment paper.
Next, scatter chunks of the remaining dough over the pan. Press the dough down evenly to flatly cover the entire pan.
Now spread the cream cheese mixture over the pressed dough.
Then spread the cooled cranberry sauce over the cream cheese.
Do this by scattering small amounts of sauce, then carefully connect the globs to each other, to prevent mixing it into the cream. If you pour all the sauce out at once it won’t spread evenly and makes a big mess.
Then take the frozen dough from the freezer and grate it over cranberry sauce. Gently spread the grated dough evenly with a fork.
How to Bake Cranberry Bars
Time to bake our holiday bars! Bake uncovered at 350 F, for 35 minutes. Remove from the oven and let it cool for 15 minutes in the baking pan before removing it from the pan onto a wire rack.
Let it cool completely then cut it into 15 equal bars. Dust with 1 tbsp. of confectioners’ sugar for a soft, powdery touch.
Your delicious Cranberry Bars are ready to be served! Serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream as it goes perfectly with the flavors in the bar. You can also enjoy the bars with a hot cup of coffee or tea.
Recipe Variation Ideas for Cranberry Bars
These cranberry bars are absolutely perfect as is, but if you’re looking to change things up, here are a few ideas you can try:
Frosting: You can top these delicious bars with some homemade vanilla icing or frosting! Or make an orange juice or lemon juice flavored one by using one cup of powdered sugar and mixing it with two tablespoons of the juice of your favorite citrus.
Oatmeal: For an extra crunch and to make them healthier, you can add some rolled oats by substituting them with the flour in the recipe.
Chocolate: Love chocolate? Then add some chocolate chips to our cranberry sauce while layering it in. White chocolate chips also work really well with the flavors in these bars.
Starbucks copycat: Do you love the Cranberry Bliss Bars at Starbucks? These taste even better, but you can add a little orange extract or orange zest to the cream cheese filling to get a similar flavor and sprinkle some craisins on top before taking it!
How to Store Cranberry Bars
You can easily store these delicious bars at room temperature for up to a day and in the fridge for up to 5 days in an airtight container.
You can also store them in the freezer for up to three months! Do this by adding a sheet of parchment paper in the middle of the layers so that they don’t stick together when frozen.
Let them thaw overnight and bring them to room temperature before enjoying them again!
Similar Recipes You'll Love
- Cinnamon Apple Bars
- White Chocolate Cranberry Pistachio Biscotti Recipe
- Dark Chocolate Cranberry and Pecan Biscotti
- Chocolate Cranberry Granola Clusters
- Perfect Shortbread Cookies (With Pistachios and Chocolate!)
Check out all Christmas recipes HERE.
Recipe Card
Sweet and Tart Cranberry Bars (Perfect for the Holidays!)
Ingredients
Cranberry Sauce Ingredients
- 12 oz. – fresh cranberries
- ½ cup – organic sugar
- 3 tbsp. - water
Cream Cheese Filling Ingredients
- 8 oz. – cream cheese (softened)
- ½ cup – organic sugar
- 1 small – egg
- ¼ cup – heavy whipping cream
Shortbread Dough Ingredients
- 2 cups – organic all-purpose flour
- 2 tbsp. – cornstarch
- ¼ tbsp. – sea salt
- 8 oz. – unsalted butter softened
- ⅓ cup – brown sugar
- 1 tsp. – pure vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp. – confectioners’ sugar for dusting
Instructions
How to Make Cranberry Sauce
- Let’s start by first making our tart cranberry filling sauce. It tastes like jam but even better! To make it, start by adding fresh cranberries, water, and sugar into a small saucepan.
- Place the saucepan on the stove and stir constantly it starts to boil. Then reduce the heat to low, and let it simmer for 5 minutes, stirring it from time to time.
- Once done, remove it from the stove and set it aside to cool.
How to Make Cream Cheese Filling
- Time to make our cream cheese filling. Place cream cheese and sugar into a large bowl. Beat on high for 2-3 minutes or until well combined. Then add egg and mix it again for 2 minutes.
- Now add heavy whipping cream and beat it for 2 minutes until it’s all well combined. Place the bowl in the fridge until you are ready for it. The cream will become a little thicker and make it easier to coat the cranberry sauce over it.
How to Make Shortbread Dough
- Now let’s make the shortbread dough to bring all our layers together in the end! To do this, start by beating softened butter on high speed for 3 minutes or until it turns creamy. Scrape down the dough on the sides of the mixing bowl in between mixing.
- Now add brown sugar and beat for a couple of minutes until combined. Scrape the sides of the mixer bowl again and then beat again for a minute.
- Then add vanilla extract and beat once more for another minute. Next, sift in the flour, and add cornstarch and salt. Mix until all are well incorporated.
- Pinch off ¼ of the dough, shape it into a disk, cover with plastic wrap and place it in the freezer to chill for shredding.
How to Assemble Cranberry Bars
- Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a 12 x 9-inch baking dish with parchment paper.
- Next, scatter chunks of the remaining dough over the pan. Press the dough down evenly to flatly cover the entire pan.
- Now spread the cream cheese mixture over the pressed dough.
- Then spread the cooled cranberry sauce over the cream cheese.
- Do this by scattering small amounts of sauce, then carefully connect the globs to each other, to prevent mixing it into the cream. If you pour all the sauce out at once it won’t spread evenly and makes a big mess.
- Then take the frozen dough from the freezer and grate it over cranberry sauce. Gently spread the grated dough evenly with a fork.
How to Bake Cranberry Bars
- Time to bake our holiday bars! Bake uncovered at 350 F, for 35 minutes. Remove from the oven and let it cool for 15 minutes in the baking pan before removing it from the pan onto a wire rack.
- Let it cool completely then cut it into 15 equal bars. Dust with 1 tbsp. of confectioners’ sugar for a soft, powdery touch.
- Your delicious Cranberry Bars are ready to be served! Serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream as it goes perfectly with the flavors in the bar. You can also enjoy the bars with a hot cup of coffee or tea.
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This is an updated recipe. The picture (below) is from Nov 21, 2014, when the recipe was originally posted.
Luda Kilimnik says
Made these yesterday and they were gone way too fast. That only means one thing...they were absolutely delicious! Love how the red stays very vibrant and pops out asking to be tasted.
I wonder if this recipe can be used to make individuals using a cupcake pan?
They taste like mini cheesecakes and I think they would be very cute made in a cupcake pan. Have you ever tried them that way?
Valya's Taste of Home says
I'm so happy to hear that you loved them. They are one of my favorites! I have not tried making them in a cupcake pan but that sounds great! I will give it a try (maybe with a different fruit). Thank you for the idea! 🙂
Tara says
Can you use frozen cranberries? Our Whole Foods is out of fresh.
Valya of Valya's Taste of Home says
I've always used fresh cranberries for these bars. Check other stores. If they do not have it then give frozen ones a try. I feel like the frozen ones will turn out to be too liqudy. Let me know how it goes.
jessica says
Can cooled cranberry sauce be stored in the freezer for future use? Thanks
Valya of Valya's Taste of Home says
It sure can, thanks for asking!
Lily says
thank you for your recipes, but i have a question. at first you said to preheat the oven to 350 and then you said to bake the pie at 375. did you just make a mistake or do i have to first bake it at 350 and then at 375? thank you for answering.
Valya of Valya's Taste of Home says
Oh, I'm so sorry! That was a typo mistake, and I already fixed it. You need to preheat the oven and then bake the bars at 350 F. Thank you for catching it and letting me know!
Galya says
Thank you so much for the recipe! It was really yummy! Our family loved them.
valya'stasteofhome.com says
I'm so glad to hear that. We love them very much too, they can be pretty addicting. 😉
Ilona's Passion says
Delicious Bars! Pinned it:)
valya'stasteofhome.com says
Thank you for Pinning! It's very much appreciated 🙂
Nina says
That looks incREDible! 😉 I like how you separated the list of ingredients with their own pictures.
valya'stasteofhome.com says
Thank you Nina!
Natasha says
Yummy! Will try to make it when most family members will come to my thanksgiving my dinner. Thanks for sharing:)
valya'stasteofhome.com says
Let me know how you and your family like it. Thanks Natasha! 🙂