Cranberry Macadamia Bars are a festive sweet treat to serve during the fall and winter holidays!
These bars have a buttery shortbread crust. The filling is a delicious gooey, orange layer. They kind of have the texture of a good lemon bar (but orange flavored). Chopped cranberries, coconut and macadamia nuts are baked on top.
How to make Cranberry Macadamia Bars:
The full, printable recipe for these bars is at the end of this post.
Make the dough for the crust:
It’s a buttery shortbread type crust with chopped macadamia nuts mixed in. Press the crust dough into the bottom of a 9×13-inch pan. Bake 10 to 15 minutes until lightly browned.
Add the filling:
Mix the filling ingredients next. It’s a sweet, orange-flavored filling. Pour the filling on top of the hot baked crust. Sprinkle with cranberries, coconut and macadamia nuts. Bake for about 1/2 hour, until golden brown.
Cut your cranberry macadamia bars while still warm. Then let them cool completely in the pan.
Use a spatula to remove the bars from the pan. Display them on a platter for serving. Maybe serve a variety of festive treats like peppermint brownies, cranberry bliss bars and gingerbread cookie bars.
These cranberry macadamia bars are a pretty tasty dessert!
If you’d like to save some for later, store them in a covered container at room temperature for a few days. If you need to stack them, divide the layers in your storage container using wax paper. They can also be store in the refrigerator. Enjoy!
Cranberry Macadamia Bars
Ingredients
CRUST:
- 1¼ cups all purpose flour
- ¾ cup granulated white sugar
- ½ cup (1 stick) cold salted butter, cut into pieces
- ½ cup finely chopped macadamia nuts (can also use hazelnuts or pecans)
FILLING:
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- 1¼ cups granulated white sugar
- 2 tablespoons milk
- 1 tablespoon finely grated orange zest
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
TOPPING:
- ½ cup finely chopped cranberries
- ½ cup shredded coconut
- ½ cup chopped macadamia nuts
Instructions
PREPARE THE CRUST:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Stir together the flour and sugar in a mixing bowl. Cut in the butter with a pastry blender or two knives until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in the nuts. Press the crust mixture into the bottom of an ungreased 9x13-inch baking pan. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until the crust is lightly browned around the edges. Keep the oven pre-heated at 350.
ADD THE FILLING AND TOPPING:
- Combine all of the filling ingredients in a mixing bowl. Whisk together until well- combined. Pour the filling over the hot crust. Sprinkle with cranberries, coconut and nuts.
- Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown. Cool slightly in pan on wire rack. Cut into bars while warm. Cool completely in pan.
Notes
- I like to use fresh cranberries (easiest to chop when they are frozen), but you can sub dried cranberries, if you'd like.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
