White Chocolate Cranberry Cookie Bars are soft, chewy cookie bars topped with cream cheese frosting and a smooth white chocolate drizzle. The perfect holiday dessert, easy to make and always a crowd favorite.
White Chocolate Cranberry Cookie Bars are so much easier to make than rolling and cutting out individual cookies. I absolutely love cookies, but sometimes it just feels like a lot of work to scoop and bake dozens of cookies. The solution? Cookie bars! Just put all the dough in a 9X13 pan and bake the whole batch at one time!
Recipe Highlights
- Crowd-pleasing flavor: Everyone loves the combination of buttery cookie, creamy frosting, and pops of cranberry.
- Easy and efficient: No need to scoop or roll dozens of cookies. Just spread the dough into one pan, bake, and frost.
- Perfect texture: Soft and chewy with the perfect balance of sweet white chocolate and tart cranberries.
- Festive and beautiful: The white chocolate drizzle and cranberries make these bars look as good as they taste.
INGREDIENTS IN WHITE CHOCOLATE CRANBERRY COOKIE BARS
- Butter – You’ll need 2 sticks of butter in this recipe. Make sure to soften the butter before mixing with the sugars.
- Brown sugar – I always use light brown sugar, but you can use dark if you prefer. For best results, make sure the brown sugar is soft and fresh.
- Eggs – You’ll need three large eggs to bind everything together and make the perfect cookies.
- Vanilla extract – The higher the quality of the vanilla, the better.
- Salt – Just a little bit of salt will help all of the other flavors to pop.
- Nutmeg – A little bit of nutmeg adds the perfect flavor to the cookie bars.
- Flour – I use all-purpose flour in cookies, but cake flour works fine too. You can even swap some of it out with wheat flour if you want, but the taste and consistency will be different.
- Dried cranberries – Most often known as Craisins, the dried cranberries really make these cookies amazing. You will put half of the Craisins in the cookie dough and save the other half to sprinkle on top of the frosted cookie bars.
- White chocolate chips – Just half a cup of white chocolate chips is the perfect amount for the cookie bars – unless you want extra, in which case, just add some more!
FROSTING
- Cream cheese – Any type of cream cheese will work (non-fat, low-fat, or regular). Make sure the cream cheese is softened to room temperature before adding to the other ingredients.
- Butter – Use real butter and make sure to soften to room temperature.
- Vanilla – The higher the quality of the vanilla, the better.
- Powdered sugar – Powdered sugar provides a sweet and smooth texture for the cookie bar frosting.
DRIZZLE
- White chocolate chips – Melt white chocolate chips to make the drizzle for the top of the bars.
- Coconut oil – Just a teaspoon of coconut oil will help to thin out the chocolate for the drizzle.
Tips for Making the Best Cookie Bars
Full instructions are on the recipe card below, but here are a few helpful tips.
- Use softened butter, not melted: Butter that’s softened to room temperature blends better with the sugar, creating a smooth, fluffy dough and giving your cookie bars the perfect soft and chewy texture. Melted butter can make the dough too runny and change how the bars bake.
- Cream the butter and sugar thoroughly: Spend at least two to three minutes creaming your butter and brown sugar together. This step helps create tiny air pockets in the dough, giving the bars a lighter, softer texture once baked.
- Watch your baking time closely: Remove the cookie bars from the oven as soon as the edges turn a light golden color. Overbaking will dry them out and make them firm instead of chewy. They’ll continue to cook slightly as they cool.
- Line your pan with parchment paper: It makes a huge difference in getting perfectly cut bars. Once cooled, you can lift the entire batch out of the pan and slice it cleanly without breaking the edges.
- Cool completely before frosting: If the cookie bars are even slightly warm, the frosting will melt and become runny. Let them cool thoroughly before adding the cream cheese layer and drizzle for a clean, bakery-style finish.
- Add the drizzle at the end: For the neatest presentation, melt your white chocolate and drizzle it only after the frosting and cranberries are set. This gives your bars that signature glossy finish and prevents smearing.
How to Store Cookie Bars
- Room temperature: Store covered at room temperature for up to one week.
- Refrigerate: If your kitchen is warm, you can refrigerate the bars for up to five days.
- Freeze: Bars can be frozen for up to three months. For best results, cut and wrap them individually in plastic wrap before freezing.
FAQs
Can I use fresh cranberries instead of dried cranberries?
You can, but dried cranberries work best for this recipe because they add sweetness and chewiness without releasing extra liquid. Fresh cranberries can make the bars more tart and slightly wetter, so if you use them, chop them small and pat them dry before mixing into the dough.
Can I make White Chocolate Cranberry Cookie Bars ahead of time?
Yes, these bars can easily be made a day in advance. Bake and cool them completely, then cover tightly and store at room temperature. Frost and drizzle them the next day for the freshest taste and prettiest presentation.
Can these cookie bars be frozen?
Absolutely. Once cooled and frosted, cut the bars into squares and wrap each one in plastic wrap before placing them in an airtight container or freezer bag. They will stay fresh for up to three months. Thaw at room temperature before serving.
What is the best way to melt white chocolate for the drizzle?
Melt white chocolate slowly in the microwave in short 15 to 20 second intervals, stirring between each one. Adding a teaspoon of coconut oil or shortening helps create a smooth, glossy texture that’s easy to drizzle.
Can I skip the frosting?
Yes, but the cream cheese frosting adds such a rich, tangy flavor that perfectly balances the sweetness of the cookie bars. If you want something lighter, you could dust the bars with powdered sugar or drizzle with white chocolate only.
How do I get clean, even slices?
The trick is to line your pan with parchment paper before baking and chill the bars for about 15 minutes before cutting. Use a sharp knife and wipe it clean between slices for bakery-quality edges.
MORE DELICIOUS COOKIE BAR RECIPES TO TRY:
- You’ll love how soft, chewy, and packed with crushed Oreos these Oreo Cookie Bars are — basically cookies and cream perfection in every bite.
- Snickerdoodle Cookie Bars take everything you love about classic snickerdoodles and turn them into soft, cinnamon-swirled bars baked right in a pan.
- Craving caramel and chocolate? These Twix Cookie Bars combine a buttery shortbread crust with layers of smooth caramel and rich chocolate on top.
- All the gooey, toasty magic of s’mores comes together in these Smores Cookie Bars, complete with graham crackers, marshmallow fluff, and chocolate chunks.
- Skip the cookie cutter and make Sugar Cookie Bars instead — thick, soft, and topped with creamy vanilla frosting for the easiest version of this classic treat.
White Chocolate Cranberry Cookie Bars are soft, chewy, and covered with cream cheese frosting and a white chocolate drizzle. Fantastic cookie bar recipe that is perfect for fall!
Issy c says
It’s not bad but I just don’t like it, I really liked the texture of the cookie bar, but found the nutmeg to be overpowering and made the base overall very one note. I think it could also do with a less sweet icing, the icing was delicious but in comparison to the cookie bar it wasn’t very cohesive.
If I made it again these are the tweaks I’d make, I’d maybe half the amount of nutmeg possible even omit it overall (it’s just really not my thing), increase the vanilla, and double the chocolate chips in the batter. For the icing I’d maybe half the amount of sugar if sticking with the traditional cream cheese frosting, but I think maybe a white chocolate ganache could be really nice here.
Overall it’s a good recipe, just not to my personal taste. But will definitely be using the recipe for the base bar again, just minus the nutmeg.
Nellie says
Thanks for all of your suggestions. You can easily leave the nutmeg out if that isn’t your thing!