Cranberry Lemon Bars

These Cranberry Lemon Bars are a delicious and refreshing dessert perfect for any occasion. They are made with a buttery shortbread crust, a tangy cranberry layer, then a creamy lemon mixture, and finished off with a light dusting of powdered sugar. It's a festive dessert that everyone will love. 

Save this recipe by clicking on the ❤️ heart on the right-hand side of the screen or in the recipe card.

❤️ Favorite things about this recipe

• These two-toned lemon bars are bright and vibrant and will look amazing on your holiday dessert table. 
•  hey also have the perfect balance of sweet and tart flavors, making them a crowd-pleasing dessert. 
• Plus, they are easy to make and can be prepared ahead of time so they are great for special occasions.

With the bright red and yellow layers, these sweet bars are perfect for any occasion. This twist on a classic dessert is a crowd favorite and will satisfy any sweet tooth.

📝 Ingredients you'll need

Note: This is an overview of the ingredients. You'll find the full measurements and instructions in the recipe card (printable) at the bottom of the page.

📋 Ingredient Notes / Variations

• Cranberries - Fresh cranberries work best for this recipe. You can use frozen in a pinch, however you will need to thaw them first. 
• Water - This will help the cranberries open up, and give you the perfect consistency for your cranberry layer. 
• Granulated sugar - Sugar helps to balance out the sweetness of the cranberries and lemons.
• Salt - I used table salt, however you can also use kosher salt.
• All-purpose flour - This will help make the shortbread base.
• Large eggs - Eggs are necessary to help bind the ingredients together.
• Fresh lemon juice - Fresh lemon juice is definitely the way to go in this recipe. It adds a bright and tangy flavor to these sweet bars.
• Lemon zest - Don't skip out on the lemon zest, it adds a wonderful pop of citrus flavor to the bars.
  Powdered sugar - This will be used as a final dusting on top of the bars. It adds a nice touch of sweetness and gives the bars a finished look.

🥣 Before you begin: essential tools

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• Large saucepan
• Large mixing bowl
• Rubber spatula 
• Square pan -. I used a 9x9 dish. 

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🥄 Step by step: instructions

Note: This is an overview of the instructions. The detailed instructions are in the recipe card below.

1. In a large saucepan over medium heat on the stove, add the cranberries, water, sugar, and salt. Once the cranberries start to pop and the water boils about 1-2 minutes, turn the heat down to medium-low and stir often. It’s best not to leave the stove at this point. The cranberries should break down and have the consistency of jam.
2. Mix the flour, salt, sugar, and lemon zest in a bowl. Whisk together. Add the vanilla extract to the melted butter. Pour wet ingredients into the dry ingredients.
3. Using a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, mix until combined. Check there are no clumps of the dry mixture. The dough should have a crumbly texture.
4. Press the dough into a square baking dish, and then poke holes into it with a fork. Then bake in a 350-degree preheated oven for 18-20 minutes. Then cool for 30 minutes.

5. While the crust is cooling, in a medium bowl, lightly whisk the eggs and pour in lemon juice.
6. In a separate bowl whisk the dry ingredients, the flour, zest, sugar, and salt. Combine the dry ingredients with the eggs and mix until combined. Try not to over-mix.
7. Spoon the cranberry layer on top of the shortbread crust, spreading evenly across the baking pan. Use the back of a spoon to push the cranberries into every crevice and against the wall of the pan.
8. Slowly pour the lemon layer over the cranberries. Pour into the center and it will spread out to all sides of the pan. Then bake a 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes. Cool for 30 - 60 minutes.

👩‍🍳 Variations to make it your own

• If you want to add a little extra flavor to your cranberry lemon squares you can fold some white chocolate chips into the cranberry layer before you assemble the bars. 
• You can also leave the powdered sugar off the top of these lemon cranberry bars and drizzle them with melted white chocolate instead. 

👍 Let's make the perfect recipe: Amira's tips

• Allow the cranberry mixture to cool a little while before you pour it on top of the crust so that it doesn't melt the crust. 
• Don't forget the parchment paper on the bottom of your baking dish. This will give you an easy way to remove the bars from the pan. 
• During the testing of this recipe, I learned that this recipe needs fresh lemon juice, the bottled kind will not work for it.
• I like to use a sharp knife that was been run under warm water and then wiped off to get clean slices of this dessert. 

🧺 How to store leftovers

Refrigerate - Store the bars in the fridge tightly covered with plastic wrap or in an airtight container to keep them fresh for up to three days. 

Freeze - You can also freeze the bars for up to two months. Just wrap them tightly in plastic wrap and then place them in a freezer-safe container. To thaw, simply leave them out on the counter for a few hours or overnight in the fridge before serving again. 

⌛ Make Ahead

​One of the reasons that I love to make these bar cookies for the holidays is that they are great when made ahead. I can make them the night before I need them so I can spend less time in the kitchen the day of. 

🍽️ Perfect pairings: what to serve with

• I love to serve these cranberry bars with our favorite fall and winter meals. Such as this Chili Tater Tot Casserole or this Carrot Lentil Soup. 
• These cranberry bars would be delicious when they are served as a holiday treat after a tasty meal of air fryer turkey breast.

💬 Your questions answered: FAQs

📣 Related Recipes

• If you are a simple lemon recipe to satisfy your sweet tooth, then look no further than this Creamy Lemon Curd in the Microwave. You can use it in so many different ways. 
• This Raspberry Danish With Lemon Cream is another beautiful dessert that you can make this holiday season. The flaky crust and lemon cream make this one of my favorite lemon desserts. 
• Are you a cranberry lover? If so, this Cranberry Orange Cheesecake is rich, creamy, and full of tangy flavor. It's another great dessert for your holiday table. 
• During baking seasons, it is easy to run out of ingredients. Here are some great nutmeg substitutes you might need.

I can't wait until you try this - it's such a lovely dessert! If you love it, tell me about it and leave a five-star rating below!

Cranberry Lemon Bars

Buttery shortbread crust with a hint of lemon topped with a layer of tart cranberries and sweet lemon curd.

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Course: baking, Dessert

Cuisine: American

Diet: Halal

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour hour 15 minutes minutes

Cooling time:: 1 hour hour 30 minutes minutes

Total Time: 3 hours hours

Servings: 16 pieces

Author: Amira

Ingredients

Cranberry layer

• ▢ 3 ½ cups cranberries 12 oz bag
• ▢ ½ cup water
• ▢ ½ cup granulated sugar
• ▢ ⅛ teaspoon salt

Shortbread Crust

• ▢ 2 cups of all-purpose flour
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon salt
• ▢ ½ cup granulated sugar
• ▢ 1 Tablespoon lemon zest 1 large lemon
• ▢ 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ▢ ¾ cup 1 ½ sticksunsalted butter, melted

Lemon layer

• ▢ 5 large eggs room temperature
• ▢ 1 ½ cup granulated sugar
• ▢ 5 Tablespoons flour scoop and level method
• ▢ ¾ cup fresh squeezed lemon juice. 3-4 lemons
• ▢ 1 Tablespoon lemon zest
• ▢ Powdered sugar optional for dusting

Instructions

Prep:

• Preheat the oven to 350° F. Spray a 9x9 inch with non-stick cooking spray. Line the pan with parchment paper (over the non-stick cooking spray) being sure the parchment goes up along the sides of the pan.
• Cranberry layer
• In a large saucepan over medium heat on the stove, add the cranberries, water, sugar and salt.
• Once the cranberries start to pop and the water boils, about 1-2 minutes, turn the heat down to medium low and stir often. It’s best not to leave the stove at this point. The cranberries should break down and have the consistency of jam. About 8-10 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside to cool while you make the crust.

Shortbread crust

• Mix the flour, salt, sugar and lemon zest in a bowl. Whisk together.
• Add the vanilla extract into the melted butter. Pour wet ingredients into the dry ingredients.
• Using a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, mix until combined. Check there are no clumps of the dry mixture. The dough should have a crumbly texture.
• Press the dough into your prepared baking dish using your finger tips. Being sure to get every corner and the dough is an even layer. You may want to use a measuring cup to press the dough firmly into the pan.
• Using the tines of a fork, randomly poke holes into the shortbread.
• Bake at 350°F for 18-20 minutes or until slightly golden brown on the edges.
• Once done, let it cool for about 30 minutes in the pan.

Lemon Layer

• While the crust is cooling, in a medium bowl, lightly whisk the eggs and pour in lemon juice.
• In a separate bowl whisk the dry ingredients, the flour, zest, sugar and salt.
• Combine the dry ingredients into the eggs and mix until combined. Try not to over mix.
• Run the lemon mixture through a mesh strainer to remove any flour clumps.

Assemble bars

• Spoon the cranberry layer on top of the shortbread crust, spreading evenly across the baking pan. Use the back of a spoon to push the cranberries into every crevice and against the wall of the pan.
• Slowly pour the lemon layer over the cranberries. Pour into the center and it will spread out to all sides of the pan. It’s very important to pour slowly so it doesn’t cause the cranberries to rise to the top, mixing with the lemon layer. This will keep the three distinct layers. If it mixes a little bit, it will still taste delicious.
• Bake in the center of your oven for 350°F for 35 - 40 minutes. The edges should be slightly brown, firm and the center may jiggle a tiny bit, but it will firm up as it cools.
• Leave the pan on your stove top for 30 to 60 minutes to cool.
• When ready to serve, draw a line with a knife between the parchment paper and the wall of the pan to cut through any lemon batter that may have leaked out. Now you should be able to lift the parchment paper with bars out of the pan and place on the cutting board. Peel back the parchment paper and cut into squares. Depending on the size of your squares you cut, you should get either 12 or 16 bars.

Notes

When cooking the cranberries, you may want to use the back of a wooden spoon to push on the berries to help break the cranberries down. Or even a potato masher near the end of the 10 minutes to squish big berries.
Powdered sugar is optional but it is a great way to cover any of the lemon curd mixture that may have cracked or any cranberries that have risen into the lemon layer. It also looks really pretty and festive.

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