Holiday Cranberry Lemon Bars

“Cranberry Lemon Bars” are quickly becoming one of my favorite holiday dessert bars. They are bright, colorful and festive. The dessert includes everything that you can pack into a Christmas bar recipe: a rich shortbread cookie crust, a bright, tart cranberry filling and a citrus, lemon top layer. Yum! Did I mention that the recipe includes fresh cranberries? That’s the best part — another recipe to use seasonal, fresh cranberries. The bars are rich; packed with calories. So, cut them into small bite-sized pieces and share with neighbors and friends. Dust on some confectioners’ sugar and we have snow. It’s the holidays!

Getting in the Mood for Holiday Baking

Making this bar recipe is a “process” — it involves mixing up three layers. Although each layer is not complicated, it does take time to prepare this recipe. This is a recipe which just can’t be rushed. I get in the mood for a holiday baking session by dialing up some relaxing music. Then I can create, escape and relax for an afternoon!

What music do I listen to? Oh, my…I’m old school. I like classics with a good rhythm such as Fleetwood Mac, John Mayer, Jack Johnson and a favorite albumn, “Rehab Reunion” by a sleeper artist, Bruce Hornsby and the Noisemakers. He composed the music using a mountain dulcimer, and I have a connection to that musical instrument. Perhaps I’ll play some Christmas and holiday music, too. No favorites, here. So, let me stop and find some selections on Spotify… Now, we’re ready.

Recipe Inspiration

My inspiration for the recipe comes from The New York Times (NYT) Cooking internet site. This site featured a recipe for cranberry lemon bars several years ago. The bars looked so tempting and inviting. I’ve made this recipe several times since that time — and have eventually adapted my own recipe ingredient proportions and process for a 9″ x 13″ baking pan.

Making the Recipe: Center Cranberry Layer

The center layer is a cranberry sauce. I make this layer first, since it involves cooking the cranberries and then cooling the sauce. This layer can even be prepared a day or two ahead.

Here are the ingredients.

I use fresh lemons in this recipe. The lemon zest goes into the cranberry sauce — and the juice of the lemons goes into the custard layer. To make the cranberry sauce, cook the fresh cranberries, sugar, water and lemon zest on the stove until the cranberries boil and pop and the sauce cooks down. Then let the sauce cool while you go on to make the crust and lemon top layer.

Rich Shortbread Crust

The bottom layer is a rich shortbread cookie crust. It is a very simple, but effective recipe. This buttery cookie helps balance the tart cranberries. You must use real butter in the crust — don’t try to substitute Crisco shortening or margarine.

Here are the ingredients. They are butter, confectioners’ sugar and flour as well as a pinch of salt and vanilla extract for flavor.

I used my food processor to mix up the crust. Pulse to combine the flour, salt and powdered sugar (confectioners’ sugar) or use a rubber spatula to combine. Add the vanilla extract and then cut in the butter. The dough will form into a soft pastry ball after processing.

It is important to line a 9″ x 13″ baking pan with aluminum foil, adding in enough foil to overhang the sides and serve as “handles.” This makes it much easier to remove the baked bars from the pan. Oil the foil. Place the cookie dough into the oiled pan and press out.

Believe it or not, the dough actually presses all the way to the edges. (I used a round bottle as a rolling pin to help level out the dough.) Bake until the pastry is just set and starting to turn brown along the edges, about 15 minutes.

Top Lemony “Custard” Layer

The top layer is a lemon “custard.” It is not a “true” custard, but rather an egg, lemon juice and sugar mixture which are stirred together and thickened with flour. Make this while the shortbread cookie crust bakes. Here are the ingredients.

I needed to juice 3 lemons to obtain 1/2 cup of lemon juice — it never hurts to have several extra lemons on standby! (I used the 2 lemons from the cranberry sauce plus one additional lemon.)

This “custard” layer is simple to mix up. And, this is not a cooked custard — you don’t have to cook the custard on the stove prior to baking the bars. To mix up, beat the eggs until well blended in a small bowl. Combine the dry ingredients — sugar, flour and a pinch of salt — in another medium-size bowl. Pour the eggs over the dry ingredients and combine. Then carefully pour in the fresh lemon juice and gently stir to combine.

Last, whew, it is time to assemble the bars. Spread the cranberry sauce over the bottom layer — the baked shortbread crust. Very carefully spread the lemony custard over the cranberry sauce and level out.

Bake the bars in a 350 degree oven until the custard is set. Don’t overbake.

It is best to refrigerate the bars for at least 2 hours so the custard “sets” and the bars stiffen. These are very sticky bars; they difficult to score and cut, especially when warm. It is easier to cut when the bars are chilled.

After the bars have chilled in the baking pan, use the aluminum “handles” to grab up and transfer the bars to a cutting board. Peel off the aluminum foil sides. I trimmed the bars and sprinkled on confectioners’ sugar.

Even with chilling, these bars are sticky. Use a knife — dipped in water — to score and cut.

This recipe makes a large batch — from 24 to 30 bars depending on the size of the cuts. These bars can be made ahead of time and frozen for a few weeks until you are use them. (In that case, wait to sprinke on confectioners’ sugar.)

When ready to serve, find a decorative serving platter and arrange on the bars. Spinkle with more confectioners’ sugar. Decorate with a few fresh cranberries and fresh rosemary.

I am loving all these holiday desserts. These tart little cranberry bars are colorful and cheery. The rich shortbread crust just manages to balance the tart berries and lemony topping. Enjoy a different kind of holiday “cookie” this year.