Cranberry bliss bars are blondies topped with white chocolate cream cheese frosting and sprinkled with dried cranberries and drizzled with white chocolate. The bar is like a blondie and that has white chocolate chips and dried cranberries in it. They are so delicious and I look forward to when Starbucks has them out again for the Holidays along with their Holiday drinks.

This recipe for cranberry bliss bars was posted back in 2011 and I wasn’t even a Star Bucks fan back then. I had noticed this recipe was trending on Pinterest when they first came out with these bars and other bloggers were making them. They looked so good I had to try them without even trying the original Star Bucks Cranberry Bliss bars.

Making cranberry bliss bars at home will save you money and you can even play around with the recipe a bit to make these bars fewer calories if you like doing that. Maybe one day I will attempt to lighten these bars up but as for now I just like to enjoy one every now and then when you can get them at Starbucks.

If you’re wondering what I get to drink at Starbucks I usually go for a tea or a latte. Lately, I've been really loving their Guava White Tea.

What do I need to make Cranberry Bliss Bars?

Making these cranberry bliss bars is a sinch to make and requires three different steps. First, you make the bar layer, frost them with cream cheese frosting, and top with more cranberries and melted white chocolate.

Bars:

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
1 ¼ cups brown sugar
3 eggs
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla
1 teaspoon powdered ginger
¼ teaspoon salt
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
¾ cup dried cranberries, chopped
6 ounces (about ¾ cup) white chocolate chips (or chopped white chocolate)

Frosting:

4 ounces cream cheese, softened
3 cups powdered sugar
4 teaspoons lemon juice
½ teaspoon vanilla
⅓ cup dried cranberries, chopped

Drizzling Icing:

½ cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons vegetable shortening
1-2 tablespoons milk

How to make Cranberry Bliss Bars

Bars:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x13 pan and set aside. In a medium bowl, cream the butter and brown sugar until smooth. Add eggs, vanilla, ginger, and salt and mix well. Gradually add flour and mix until smooth. Stir in cranberries and white chocolate. Pour the batter into the greased pan, using a spatula to evenly spread the batter in the pan. Bake 30-40 minutes, until edges are light brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool completely before frosting.

Frosting:

Beat the cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla, and lemon juice until completely smooth. Spread on the completely cool cake. Sprinkle the top with cranberries.

Drizzling Icing:

In a small bowl, whisk together 1 tablespoon of milk, powdered sugar, and vegetable shortening. Gradually add more milk until the icing has a thick but drizzly consistency. I used closer to 2 tablespoons. Put the icing into a ziploc bag and snip off a tiny bit of the corner. Drizzle the icing on top in zig-zags.

Tips for Cranberry Bliss Bars

Cut the bars into triangles after they have cooled so they look exactly like Starbucks!

Line your baking dish with some aluminum foil or parchment paper before baking the bars. Easy cleanup.

If you don’t want to make these the other option is to always go to Starbucks and grab a bar yourself. Then you won’t be tempted to eat the whole pan in one sitting! 🙂 They are a must-try.

Other Bar Recipes

Salted Caramel Butter Bars

Healthy Lemon Bars

Grandma's Pumpkin Bars

Cookies and Cream Rice Krispie Bars