Cranberry Crumble Bars
The holiday season is here, and that means it’s BAKING season! Each year, I make dozens and dozens of cookies to serve at holiday gatherings and give away as gifts to friends and family. And this year, I have a new goodie to add to my cookie tray and yours: Cranberry Crumble Bars!
Cranberry Season’s New It-Girl
When it comes to fall and winter baking, everyone talks about pumpkin and apples…but in my mind, cranberries are the real MVP. Their tartness brightens up any sweet treat, and their vivid red color makes your bakes so enticing.
These bars pair plump, juicy cranberries with a buttery cardamom shortbread and an oat-pecan crumble. They’re fruity, they’re nutty, they’re like a pie crossed with a cookie bar…and they’re honestly one of the most delicious things I’ve made in a while.
I know by the time I post this, cranberry season will be nearing its end, but if you can get a hold of either fresh or frozen cranberries, you’re going to want to make a batch of these for your holiday table.
Tips for Making Your Best Cranberry Crumble Bars
These bars aren’t complicated to make, but there are a few things you can do to make sure yours turn out cookie tray-ready!
Line your pan with parchment, letting it hang over the edge on two sides. This helps you pull the bars out of the pan more easily. These bars are best to cut once they’ve cooled and firmed up, so they’re easier to cut when you pull them out of the pan first.
Cardamom shortbread. This is a simple shortbread with a teaspoon of ground cardamom mixed in. Two tricks here: First, don’t over-mix your dough. Mix only until no flour bits remain and it comes together into large crumbles, then press the crumbles into your prepared pan. Second, make sure your shortbread base is well-baked before you add the toppings and bake again. If it’s not, you’ll end up with a sad, doughy crust. Look for a dry top and some nice browning around the edges.
Cranberry filling. You can use either fresh or frozen cranberries here. If you use frozen ones, you don’t have to thaw them first—they’ll bake up perfectly from frozen. I opted to flavor mine with vanilla bean paste, but if you don’t have it you could use a splash of vanilla extract instead—or, toss in some orange zest for a citrusy version.
Crumble Topping. This is a simple crumble made with oats, brown sugar, flour, salt, butter, and pecans. The only trick with this part is to make sure to use COLD butter and don’t overwork it when you rub it into the dry ingredients (you don’t want the butter to melt).
And that’s that! Bake up your shortbread, layer on your cranberry filling and oat-pecan crumble, and bake again until bubbling and brown around the edges. Then cool, cut, and enjoy!
More Unique Holiday Sweets for Your Treat Table
I hope you like these Cranberry Crumble Bars as much as I do. They’ll make a perfect addition to your holiday cookie tray this year, and will also be a great treat for next fall’s cranberry season!
And if you’re looking for more unique treats for your holiday table, give some of these a try:
- Matcha Pistachio 7-Layer Bars
- Chocolate Gingerbread Biscotti
- Northern Ginger Cookies (my signature soft maple ginger cookie spiked with espresso!)
- Popcorn & Hot Chocolate Cookies
- Chocolate Peppermint Cream Pie
- Spiced Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
- Peppermint Swirl Marshmallows
- Rosewater Champagne Truffles
Wishing you the happiest of holiday seasons!
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Cranberry Crumble Bars
Equipment
- 1 9×9 square cake pan
Ingredients
Cardamom Shortbread Base
- 3/4 c butter, softened
- 1/4 c granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 c all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp ground cardamom
- pinch salt
Cranberry Filling
- 3 c whole cranberries, fresh or frozen
- 3/4 c granulated sugar
- 2 T corn starch
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
- pinch salt
Oat-Pecan Crumble Topping
- 1/2 c brown sugar, packed
- 1/2 c old-fashioned oats
- 1/3 c all-purpose flour
- pinch salt
- 1/4 c cold butter, cut into 1" pieces
- 1/2 c chopped pecans
Instructions
Cardamom Shortbread Base
- Preheat oven to 325℉. Line a 9×9" square baking pan with parchment paper, leaving some overhang on two sides (this makes the bars easier to pull out of the pan when they're baked).
- In the bowl of a stand mixer (or a large mixing bowl using a hand mixer), cream together the softened butter and granulated sugar. Once it's light and fluffy, add cardamom and salt and mix until combined.
- Add flour and salt and mix until combined. You shouldn't have any unmixed flour, but the dough will still be in large crumbles.
- Pour crumbles into your prepared pan, and press firmly into the pan, ensuring the dough reaches to all four sides and corners of the pan. Poke holes into the dough with a fork, then bake for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow them to cool for a few minutes.
- Turn oven up to 350℉.
Cranberry Filling
- In a mixing bowl, combine the cranberries (fresh or frozen—don't thaw them first if they're frozen), sugar, corn starch, vanilla bean paste, and salt. Set aside while you make the crumble topping.
Oat-Pecan Crumble Topping
- In a small mixing bowl, combine brown sugar, oats, flour, and salt. Toss in the cold butter chunks, and use your fingers to rub the butter into the sugar mixture until it's in pea-sized pieces. Then mix in the pecans.
Putting it all together…
- Once your cardamom shortbread has cooled for a few minutes, pour the cranberry filling mixture onto it and spread it into all corners of the bars. Then sprinkle the crumble topping evenly over the top.
- Bake at 350℉ for 50-60 minutes or until the top is nicely browned and the filling is nice and bubbly.
- Remove from the oven and set on a cooling rack. Let cool completely before cutting into bars (trust me—if you try to cut them up when they're warm, you'll have cranberry filling spilling out everywhere!). Cut into 16 bars and serve!
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If you made this recipe and loved it (or didn’t love it), please consider leaving a review and a comment below! Reviews help these recipes show up more prominently in online searches, and feedback in the comments (good or bad…but please be kind:)) helps me know what turns out well for you and what could use some work.
Thanks for being here and baking my recipes!
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