This cranberry dessert bar recipe is loaded with holiday flavor and makes the perfect dessert during the festive season. A sweet graham cracker crust is topped with layers of sweet vanilla cream cheese filling, homemade cranberry filling, and a final layer of crunchy, sweet brown sugar pecan topping. It’s a sweet, tangy dessert that will have everyone begging for more.
Cranberries are one of the staple flavors of the holidays, and when the season of pilgrims and holly jolly everything rolls around, we love to make all sorts of cranberry desserts. Their tart flavor is synonymous with the holidays, and when you balance it with sweet ingredients, you end up with desserts that are loaded with complex flavors without a lot of effort. And let’s face it, during the holidays, less effort is always better!
One of our favorite recipes to make is these cranberry dessert bars. They’re perfect for any holiday gathering, but if you make them with frozen cranberries, you can enjoy them all year long!
Why You’ll Love These Cranberry Cheesecake Bars
- Simple Ingredients: This is a no-frills dessert bar recipe that uses simple ingredients that are already in your kitchen or at your local grocery store.
- Easy to Make: This is an (almost) no-bake dessert that only takes a few minutes of prep and a little chilling time in the fridge.
- Classic Fall Flavor: The cranberries, sweet vanilla cream cheese, and brown sugar pecan topping create a classic holiday flavor combo.
- A Year-Round Treat: We’ve made this version with fresh cranberries, but you can use frozen cranberries to enjoy these dessert bars year-round.
Ingredients
Graham Cracker Crust
- Graham Crackers: Crushed graham crackers are the base for the sweet crust.
- Butter: Butter adds richness and holds the crust together.
- Sugar: Sugar gives the crust all its great sweetness.
Cranberry Filling
- Fresh Cranberries: The super-tart flavor of the cranberries are balanced by the other sweet ingredients in the recipe. We used fresh, but feel free to use frozen.
- Orange Juice and Zest: The natural sweetness and acidity of the orange juice and zest balanced out the tartness of the cranberries.
- Sugar: Sugar tempers the tartness of the cranberries and the acidity of the orange juice.
Cream Cheese Filling:
- Cream Cheese and Cool Whip: Cream cheese and Cool Whip create a light, fluffy filling.
- Powdered Sugar: Powdered sugar adds sweetness and body to the filling.
- Vanilla: Vanilla adds a smooth depth of flavor.
Brown Sugar Pecan Topping
- Chopped Pecans: Chopped pecans add a crunchy, earthy flavor and texture.
- Flour: Flour adds body and binds the pecans together.
- Brown Sugar: Brown sugar adds deep, sweet flavor and a golden color as the topping bakes.
See the recipe card at the end of the post for a full list of ingredients and their exact amounts.
Flavor Variations
- Graham Crackers: Use your favorite graham cracker flavors to change up the crust flavor.
- Cranberries: Use your favorite berries to create different fruit fillings for the bars.
- Pecans: Pecans, almonds, walnuts, or any of your other favorite nuts work well and create different flavor profiles for the bars.
How to Make Cranberry Dessert Bars
Graham Cracker Crust
1: Lightly spray a 9×13 baking dish with cooking spray and line it with parchment paper. Set aside.
2: Mix the graham cracker crust ingredients until fully combined. Then, press them firmly into the bottom of the baking dish to form an even layer.
Cranberry Filling
1: Combine the cranberry filling ingredients in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Remove the mixture from the heat when the cranberries burst, and the sauce thickens. Set aside to cool.
Cream Cheese Filling
1: Beat the cream cheese until light and fluffy.
2: Add the powdered sugar and vanilla and beat again. Then, fold in the Cool Whip.
Brown Sugar Pecan Topping
1: Combine the topping ingredients, then spread the mixture out on a prepared baking sheet. Bake for 15 minutes, then set aside to cool.
Assembly
1: Spread half the cream cheese mixture over the graham cracker crust. Then, top it with the cooled cranberry sauce.
2: Top the cranberry sauce with the remaining cream cheese mixture.
3: Break up the baked pecan mixture and sprinkle it evenly over the cream cheese layer.
4: Chill for at least 4 hours and enjoy!
Hint
It’s important to stir the cranberry mixture constantly as it cooks to prevent sticking or scorching.
Storage
Refrigerate this cranberry dessert in an airtight container for up to 4 days. For longer storage, wrap the bars in plastic wrap and freeze them for up to a month in an airtight, freezer-safe container. Defrost them in the refrigerator overnight before serving.
What to Serve with These Cranberry Dessert Bars
During the holiday season, make these bars part of a larger dessert table with other sweet favorites like mini pumpkin cheesecakes, sweet potato casserole, or Christmas toffee.
If you make these throughout the year, pair them with classic breakfast items like breakfast crescent rolls, bacon, or hash brown breakfast casserole for a sweet and savory breakfast or brunch.
Tips
- Bring your cranberry mixture to a boil over medium heat to avoid burning. Don’t try to rush it with high heat!
- Stir the cranberry filling constantly while it cooks to prevent scorching and sticking.
- Whip your cream cheese until light and fluffy before adding any other ingredients for the best texture.
- Fold in the Cool Whip gently to keep as much of that light, airy texture as possible in your cream cheese mixture. Don’t stir it in.
FAQ
Cranberry dessert bars are a variation of no-bake cheesecake bars made with a graham cracker crust and alternating layers of a sweet, tangy cheesecake filling and a sweet, tart cranberry filling.
Run hot water over a sharp knife for a few seconds. Then, quickly wipe the knife dry with a clean towel and make a cut down the length of the cheesecake bar sheet. Repeat the process to make cuts down and across the cheesecake until you have neat squares.
Even if your cranberry sauce isn’t visibly scorched, it can still take on a scorched, burned flavor if you bring it too a boil too quickly and/or don’t stir it enough while it cooks. It gets this flavor because parts of the cranberries burn a bit, but not enough burns to create a visibly scorched filling.
Try This Cranberry Dessert Bar Recipe Today
Whether you’re making this recipe for the holidays or throughout the year, this cranberry dessert is always a hit with family and friends. Make it a delicious addition to your holiday dessert table or simply bring the flavor of the holidays to any night of the week. This recipe is so easy and so good, you’ll find yourself looking for reasons to make it. We guarantee it.
More Delicious Cranberry Desserts You’ll Enjoy
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Cranberry Dessert
Ingredients
Cranberry Filling
- 12 ounce fresh cranberries
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon orange zest
- ¼ cup orange juice
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
Graham Cracker Crust
- 1 ¾ cup graham cracker crumbs
- ½ cup butter, melted
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
Cream Cheese Mixture
- 8 ounce cream cheese
- 8 ounce cool whip
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Brown Sugar Pecan Topping
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup all purpose flour
- ¾ cup chopped pecans
- ¼ cup melted butter
Instructions
- Lightly spray a 9×13 glass baking dish with cooking spray. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
Cranberry Filling
- In a medium saucepan add cranberries, sugar, orange zest, orange juice, and cornstarch. Stir to combine and bring to a boil over medium heat. Once the cranberries start to burst and thicken up remove from the heat and let cool.
Graham Cracker Crust
- Using a medium mixing bowl, stir graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and melted butter together until combined.
- Spread mixture into prepared baking dish, and press into an even layer.
Cream Cheese Mixture
- In a medium mixing bowl, beat cream cheese for approximately 2-3 minutes until it is light and fluffy.
- Add powdered sugar and vanilla, and beat until combined then fold in cool whip until incorporated.
- Spread half of the cream cheese mixture in an even layer over the crust.
- Spread the cranberry sauce on top of the cream cheese mixture and spread evenly.
- Add the remaining cream cheese mixture.
Brown Sugar Pecan Topping
- In a small bowl, mix brown sugar, flour, pecans, and butter together.
- Spread mixture on prepared baking sheet and bake in the oven for 15 minutes.
- Remove, let cool, then break into small pieces.
- Sprinkle brown sugar pecan topping over cream cheese mixture.
- Cover with foil or plastic wrap and refrigerate for 4+ hours or overnight.
Notes
- Bring your cranberry mixture to a boil over medium heat to avoid burning. Don’t try to rush it with high heat!
- Stir the cranberry filling constantly while it cooks to prevent scorching and sticking.
- Whip your cream cheese until light and fluffy before adding any other ingredients for the best texture.
- Fold in the Cool Whip gently to keep as much of that light, airy texture as possible in your cream cheese mixture. Don’t stir it in.
