As if we needed another excuse to eat dessert, it’s National Cookie Day! Yesterday, I attempted to put my own spin on Starbucks’ Cranberry Bliss Bars. It didn’t go well.
I didn’t know that cookies could be both over and under cooked at the same time, but I do now. I decided to change my approach for the second round. Rather than trying to make bites, I went with the more traditional bar style of cookies. They turned out AWESOME.
Because I want to freeze these and put them in the cookie boxes I make for coworkers, I decided to forgo the cream cheese and white chocolate topping characteristic of the Starbucks bars, but if you wanted to include it I know it’s very easy to find a copycat recipe online! As usual, I used salted butter because that’s what we had on hand. If using unsalted butter, add a half teaspoon of salt!
INGREDIENTS
- 1 cup butter, melted
- 1 1/2 cups light brown sugar, packed
- 2 large eggs
- 2 tsp orange zest (or 1 tsp orange extract)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp cornstarch
- 1 cup white chocolate chips
- 3/4 cup dried cranberries
TO MAKE
- Preheat oven to 350°. Line a 13×9″ cake pan with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, combine ginger, baking powder, flour and cornstarch. Mix quickly and set aside.
- In the bowl of a mixer, beat together brown sugar and melted butter until well combined and light in color. Add in eggs, orange zest and vanilla extract and beat until well mixed.
- Add flour mixture to the egg and butter mixture, beating until just blended. Do not over mix.
- Add cranberries and white chocolate chips, stirring by hand.
- Transfer dough into the parchment lined pan, spread evenly.
- Bake for 28-32 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown and the middle is set.
These bars can be enjoyed immediately, or chilled for sharper edges when cutting.
Recipe inspiration from mykitchencraze.com, images are my own.
