Description
Cranberry crumb bars are absolutely irresistible down to the last crumb! You’ll love these easy and delicious brown butter cranberry bars for the holidays!
Ingredients
Crust & Crumbs
- 14 Tbsp (196 g) unsalted butter
- 3/4 cup (150 g) granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup (55 g) light brown sugar
- 1 tsp (4 g) almond extract
- 2 cups (250 g) all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon (1.25 g) baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 cup (28 g) sliced almonds
- 1 Tbsp (15 g) ice water
Filling
- 2 cups (220 g) fresh or frozen cranberries
- 3/4 cup (150 g) granulated sugar
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 3 Tbsp (45 g) Amaretto
- 2 Tbsp (30 grams) water
- 1 tsp (3 g) arrowroot starch (or cornstarch)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F and line an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper.
- Make crust and crumbs: Cook butter in a heavy saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly until it foams, turns clear, and then turns a medium brown, about 5 minutes. Add brown butter to a large bowl and whisk in sugar, brown sugar, and almond extract until combined.
- Whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon in a medium bowl; add to butter mixture and fold in until incorporated. Set aside 3/4 cup dough for the topping, mixing in sliced almonds and ice water until mixture is crumbly. Chill until ready to use. Press remaining dough evenly into bottom of prepared pan.
- Bake crust for 14 to 16 minutes, until lightly golden and set. Transfer to a wire rack and cool for 15 minutes.
- Make cranberry filling: Combine cranberries, sugar, salt, Amaretto, and water in a heavy saucepan over medium high heat. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly, until cranberries begin to split open. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add arrowroot starch and cook until thickened, about two minutes. Spread cranberry filling evenly over cooled crust and crumble reserved dough over cranberry layer.
- Bake bars for another 36 to 40 minutes, or until topping is golden and filling slightly bubbly. Cool completely in pan on a wire rack. Just before cutting, chill in the freezer for 15 minutes. Carefully lift parchment and place bars on a cutting board; cut into squares with a sharp knife.
- Store crumb bars in an airtight container in the refrigerator up to 3 days. Bring to room temperature before serving.
Notes
Filling: In lieu of making your own filling, substitute 1 1/3 cups leftover cranberry sauce.
Amaretto: If you don’t want to use amaretto, you can sub in bourbon or just omit and flavor the filling with 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract or 1 teaspoon of pure almond extract. If you use an extract for flavor instead of amaretto or bourbon, add 1-2 additional tablespoons of water so there’s enough liquid to bring the filling to a boil.