Cranberry Orange Bliss Bars

~Jaclyn~

This recipe is absolutely a knock-off of the original Cranberry Bliss Bar that Starbucks has been offering for years, but to be completely honest I’ve never actually had one from there. I’m usually spending my money on a warm chai latte or green tea, so I’ve never really noticed these delightful little bars before. I ran across this recipe when I was looking for holiday treats to make and the bright white and red colors caught my eye. And I’m actually very intimidated by baking that the idea of making a bar over individual cookies won me over immediately. These bars have a crispy crust with a soft center filled with bright cranberries, white chocolate chips, a hint of ginger, and topped with a thin layer of scrumptious cream cheese frosting that has an inkling of orange. And if that wasn’t enough, there are more cranberries sprinkled on top with a light drizzle of white chocolate. Festive and so so delicious! 

The original copycat recipe that I found here, called for orange extract in the bars and frosting, which I thought was a great addition to pair with the cranberries and white chocolate chips, but I discovered that it is impossible to find (even during the holiday season!). I went to Whole Foods to find that it was not just sold out, they don’t even carry it. So right before giving up on the whole recipe, it was too obvious when I thought, duh, I can just use a real orange. So after my fourth trip to the store to grab an orange I was set, and I’m sure glad I did! I zested it into my frosting and added just about a teaspoon of fresh juice. It brightened the bars up, complimented the cranberries, and I love the look of the little orange bits on top. 

The dough is super easy and quick to make. First, cream together two sticks of melted butter with brown sugar, then add in two eggs and vanilla and beat until fully mixed. Then slowly add in the dry ingredients (flour, ground ginger, baking powder, and salt) until everything is just mixed in – you really don’t want to over mix at this point. Finally, stir in cranberries and white chocolate chips until evenly dispersed and spread all the dough into the bottom of a 13×9 rimmed pan. I lined mine with parchment paper because I recently discovered how amazing of a cooking tool it is, and you can easily lift the beautiful bars from the pan when they are cooled. The bars only need to bake for about 20 minutes and need to completely cool before frosting, so I would hold off making your frosting until they come out of the oven, or else you can store it in the fridge while the bars cool.

Now lets talk frosting. I have a really hard time eating frosting where the base is butter because I’m just not a fan of the texture or the taste. So my favorite type of frosting is made with a base of cream cheese, which is really the perfect compliment to these bars. To make the frosting, beat together cream cheese and powdered sugar until combined, then add in vanilla extract and a small squeeze of fresh orange juice. It is much easier if the cream cheese has had time to soften, but it will still come together just fine if not. Lastly, add in fresh orange zest and gave the frosting a final mix. This frosting is so delicious and creamy, you won’t be missing any butter I promise. Once the bars are cooled, pull them out of the pan using the parchment paper and frost away. What makes these bars so beautiful and festive is the sprinkling of cranberries and drizzle of white chocolate on top. I recommend chopping the cranberries up before sprinkling them on because they are more delicate and you don’t want an overwhelming amount of them. For the white chocolate drizzle I used these white chocolate wafers. It is advantageous to use wafers or bars to melt down and drizzle over the top, because regular chips are formulated to hold their shape in high heat. That is why when you cut into the bars after they have baked you can still see the big chunks of white chocolate with the cranberries. And finally a note on cutting – these must be cut into rectangles then cut horizontally. I don’t know why, but it makes all the difference in how they taste. Enjoy immediately or store in the refrigerator if you have self-control. Enjoy and Happy Holidays!!