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Copycat Cranberry Bliss Bars

Whether you’ve tried this treat at a certain coffee shop or not, you’re sure to love the creamy, citrusy winter goodness of these cranberry bliss bars!

Whether you've tried this treat at a certain coffee shop or not, you're sure to love the creamy, citrusy winter goodness of these cranberry bliss bars!

This post originally appeared on Catz in December of 2012. Seven years on, cranberry bliss bars continue to be popular, Starbucks keeps making and selling them, and we keep eating them – both theirs and these ones that we make at home! We’ve remade and rephotographed this, well, blissful recipe, and updated the recipe and post a bit as well. Enjoy!

When I was four or five months pregnant with my oldest daughter, Grace, I went to Starbucks after work one evening to wait for Josh to pick me up. After sitting there for awhile, I grew hungry…as pregnant women have a tendency to do. I needed a snack! Cause, you know…pregnant! I went up to the pastry counter and looked over all the muffins, cookies, and other desserts before finally settling on a cranberry bliss bar…my very first time trying one. In a word, that first bite was bliss…so it makes sense that they’re called cranberry bliss bars.Whether you've tried this treat at a certain coffee shop or not, you're sure to love the creamy, citrusy winter goodness of these cranberry bliss bars!

Every year since then, when the holidays roll around, I make it a tradition of buying cranberry bliss bars at least once or twice a season. Or more. I mean, who am I kidding, these things are crazy good!

Last Christmas, I made up my mind that I was going to find a copycat version that I could make at home. I mean, those bliss bars do get expensive after awhile, and sometimes you just don’t want to have to leave the house! This recipe is so good and tastes just like the original. The one thing that I think really makes these bliss bars close to the real deal is the addition of the orange zest in the frosting. Don’t leave it out! You could use 1/4 tsp of orange extract if you’ve got it, but I really prefer the freshness of the zest.  Everyone I’ve served this to can’t tell the difference between the original and the copycat. These are so good and so easy that I even made them for a Christmas dessert one year for my family’s Christmas!Whether you've tried this treat at a certain coffee shop or not, you're sure to love the creamy, citrusy winter goodness of these cranberry bliss bars!

These cranberry bliss bars are the perfect treat to bring to company Christmas parties, bible studies, potlucks, white elephant parties, ugly Christmas sweater parties…or just for fun. 

If you love these deliciously sweet, yet slightly tart Cranberry Bliss Bars as much as I do, I think you should venture on out to make them for your family or friends because they really are yummy (and not to mention, easier on the wallet). 

Whether you've tried this treat at a certain coffee shop or not, you're sure to love the creamy, citrusy winter goodness of these cranberry bliss bars!

Happy copycat baking everyone!

Whether you've tried this treat at a certain coffee shop or not, you're sure to love the creamy, citrusy winter goodness of these cranberry bliss bars!

{Starbucks Copycat} Cranberry Bliss Bars

Yield: 20-24 bars
Prep Time: 35 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Additional Time: 2 minutes
Total Time: 57 minutes

Whether you've tried this treat at a certain coffee shop or not, you're sure to love the creamy, citrusy winter goodness of these cranberry bliss bars!

Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup butter, cubed
  • 1 1/2 cups brown sugar
  • 2 large eggs, room temperature
  • 3/4 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 1/4 cup all purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/8 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 cup dried cranberries
  • 6 oz white baking chocolate, coarsely chopped

Frosting

  • 1 pkg (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 1 tbsp grated orange zest
  • 6 oz white baking chocolate melted
  • 1/2 cup dried cranberries, chopped

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9 x13 baking dish, set aside. In a large bowl, combine the melted butter and brown sugar and allow to cool slightly.
  2. Add eggs to the bowl, one at a time and smix in vanilla extract. In another bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon; gently stir into butter mixture. Stir in cranberries and coarsly chopped white chocolate - this is a very thick batter! Spread into prepared 9x13 baking dish.
  3. Bake for 18-20 minutes and golden brown. A toothpick should come out clean when inserted in the middle. Allow to cool completely on a wire rack.
  4. For frosting: beat cream cheese, powdered sugar, and orange zest with an electric mixer until smooth. Gradually beat in half of the melted white chocolate. Spread over the cooled blondies and top with chopped cranberries. Drizzle with remaining melted white chocolate.
  5. Cut into triangles and store in an airtight container in the fridge.

Notes

Recipe Source: Taste of Home

Nutrition Information:
Yield: 24 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 278Total Fat: 14gSaturated Fat: 9gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 32mgSodium: 121mgCarbohydrates: 34gFiber: 3gSugar: 21gProtein: 4g
 

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