Cranberry Bliss Bars are a buttery and chewy “Blondie” Bar, filled with white chocolate chips, dried cranberries and a touch of orange flavor. They are topped with a layer of cream cheese and white chocolate frosting. For a final touch, melted white chocolate is drizzled over the bars. I fell in love with these when I first tried one at a Starbucks. Now, I can make them at home, at a fraction of the cost.
When I used to work near a Starbucks, I’d treat myself to a London Fog Tea or an Americano coffee, on occasion. One day, I decided to try one of their Cranberry Bliss Bars. Wow! I bit into the buttery and chewy blondie bar, and got a taste of white chocolate and tart dried cranberries– I was smitten. These come with a hefty price tag, though!
It became my mission to figure out how to clone these at home. Blondie bars are pretty easy to make, so that’s a good starting point.
You’ll want to spray an 8×8 baking pan with non-stick baking spray. Line the pan with either an aluminum foil or parchment paper “sling”. I discovered these really cool Parchment Paper Clips by Nordicware. I couldn’t find them on Amazon, but I did find them at my local Target store. Otherwise, good old binder clips work well, too.
The dough is almost like my Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars, without the semi-sweet chocolate chips. The basics are butter, brown sugar, vanilla and egg. Of course, you need white chocolate chips and dried cranberries. Orange zest adds a subtle citrus background. I love my Pure Orange Oil, that I use instead of orange zest. A little bit goes a long way!
I have to give a shout out to these Swedish Dishcloths that I use (I rarely use paper towels, nowadays). Damp, they are perfect to put under a bowl to keep it from sliding around. Let’s begin:
To melted butter, add the brown sugar and whisk together. Add one egg, the vanilla and orange oil (if using, instead of orange zest).
Add the dry ingredients of flour, salt and orange zest (if not using orange oil) mix together until just combined. Gently fold in the white chocolate chips and dried cranberries.
Evenly spread the batter into the prepared pan, spreading with an offset spatula or knife. Bake at 350F between 18-21 minutes. You’ll want to see the edges just turning golden brown and that a toothpick comes out clean in the center. Don’t over bake, though! (You want the bars to be chewy, not dry.) Allow to cool for about 15 minutes, then remove to a cooling rack to completely cool.
To make the frosting, melt the white chocolate. You can use the double boiler method, but my microwave (at 50% power) , stirring in 30 second increments worked well. Whip the cream cheese with a hand mixer (or stand mixer) and sifted powder sugar. Add about 3/4 of the melted white chocolate to the mixture. I added about 1/8 tsp of pure orange oil to the frosting. This is optional, but I think it adds great flavor.
Once the “blondie” bar has completely cooled, I like to place dollops of frosting on top. Using the same offset spatula, spread the frosting evenly. Lay the frosting on as thin or thick as you prefer. (Any leftover frosting can be stored in the fridge for up to a month.)
Sprinkle some chopped dried cranberries and for the final touch– more white chocolate! (I had to reheat the melted white chocolate for 10 seconds, so it could easily be drizzled over the frosted bars.)
That was both easy and fun to do! It’s about time to taste test these (I plan to give these as gifts.)
I cut these into 16 squares, and then each square in half, as triangles. That yielded 32 bar cookies.
These do look festive and just like the ones I’ve paid a pretty penny for. Taste test time!
TASTING NOTES: What more can I say, besides “yummy“?! The cookie bar is buttery, chewy and has just a hint of orange. The frosting is sweet, with a hint of orange. The tartness of the cranberries helps to balance the sugary sweetness of the frosting. These are very rich, so one cookie will tickle your taste buds. I once made these for a potluck, and the plate was emptied before I knew it! I store these in an air tight container for up to 3 days. I don’t know how long these last, because they disappear within a day or two.
Can this recipe be doubled? Absolutely!
Do I have to add orange oil? No, not at all. Orange zest works fine. You can leave it out, altogether, if you prefer.
Do these freeze well? I don’t know, because I haven’t tried that. My guess is that they would, as long as their are wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and then foil.
{Copycat} Starbucks Cranberry Bliss Bars
Equipment
- 1 8×8 pan lined with a parchment or aluminum foil sling
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter melted
- 1 large egg
- 1 cup light brown sugar packed
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon orange zest optional -OR- 1/8 tsp. pure orange oil (SEE NOTES)
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon salt optional
- ¾ cup white chocolate chips
- ½ cup dried cranberries loosely packed
FOR THE FROSTING
- 1 cup white chocolate chips melted and divided
- 4 ounces cream cheese softened
- ¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/8 tsp pure orange oil optional (SEE NOTES)
- 2 cups confectioners’ sugar sifted
For the garnish:
- ¼ cup dried cranberries loosely packed and small diced (for garnish)
Instructions
FOR THE BARS:
- Preheat oven to 350F.
- Spray an 8-by-8-inch pan with non-stick baking spray (Bakers Joy recommended)
- Line the pan with parchment or an aluminum foil sling, with enough of an edge to hang over (I clamp the edges over so they don’t fold into the batter.)
- In a medium microwave-safe bowl, melt the butter, about 45-60 seconds.
- Add the brown sugar and whisk or stir thoroughly.
- Add the egg, vanilla, orange oil (if using, instead of orange zest) and stir to combine.
- Add the flour, salt, and stir until just combined. Do not over mix or the bars will be tough.
- Fold in 3/4 cup white chocolate chips, 1/2 cup cranberries, optional orange zest, and stir to combine.
- Pour the batter into prepared pan, smoothing it lightly with an off set spatula or a knife.
- Bake for 18 to 21 minutes, and center is set and the edges are a golden brown. The sides should be slightly pulling away from the sides of the pan. Check that a toothpick comes out clean. DO NOT OVER BAKE!
- Allow the bars to cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Gently lift out the bars with the edges of the sling and place on a cooling rack until completely cooled.
FOR THE FROSTING:
- In a small microwave-safe bowl, melt the white chocolate on half power, in 30 second increments. Stir each time and continue in 20 second intervals until the chocolate can be stirred and is smooth.
- Likewise, you can melt the chocolate using the double boiler method.
- Using a stand mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment, OR a hand mixer, combine cream cheese, about 3/4 of the melted white chocolate, about half of the confectioner's sugar (to prevent a sugar "storm"). Mix until the frosting starts to become cohesive. Add the remaining confectioners sugar until the frosting is soft and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary.
Frost the bars:
- To frost, I like to add dollops of frosting (a cookie scoop makes this easier) along each corner and one in the center. Evenly spread with an offset spatula, to the thickness of your liking. Any leftover frosting can be stored in an airtight container, in the refrigerator, up to a month.
- Evenly sprinkle 1/2 cup cranberries over the top of the frosted bars.
- Drizzle the bars with the remaining melted white chocolate. You might have to reheat the chocolate in the microwave for about 15 seconds (half power) if it has solidified while frosting the bars.
- Allow bars to set up for at least 30 minutes before slicing and serving.
- Once the frosting and chocolate drizzled has set, I like to slice the bar into 16 squares, then into triangles. This yields about 32 servings. The bars are rich and sweet, so smaller servings are ideal.
Notes
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