Cranberry Lemon Bars

These Cranberry Lemon Bars are sweet, tart, and the perfect addiction to your table this holiday season! Lemon bars are already a household favorite on their own, but adding a thin layer of fresh cranberry jam adds an invigorating twist your guests won’t expect.

WHY THIS CRANBERRY LEMON BARS RECIPE IS SO GOOD

• Bright Flavors – Lemon bars are already delicious because of the way they mix sweet with sour, and cranberries add another tart layer that makes these extra tasty!
• Easy Recipe – Bars are easier to make than pies and cakes, and just as fun to eat! Cranberry Lemon Bars do have a few layers and steps, but the steps are very easy to execute.
• Can Be Gluten Free – We are using all-purpose flour to make the crust for these lemon bars and using it to thicken the lemon curd too, but feel free to swap it out for your favorite gluten-free flour alternative. Just make sure it contains xanthan gum.

TIPS AND TRICKS FOR MAKING THE BEST CRANBERRY LEMON BARS

• Fresh lemons are a must! You’ll need about 4 large lemons to get the lemon juice and lemon zest needed to make these cranberry lemon bars.
• But frozen cranberries are totally fine. Since we’re cooking the cranberries, you can use either fresh or frozen ones in this recipe. You don’t even need to let frozen cranberries thaw before making the cranberry sauce.
• Be gentle when pouring the lemon filling over the cranberry layer so that you don’t disturb it too much. If you do happen to mix up the layers a bit, don’t stress about it. The lemon and cranberry fillings will settle and look perfect after baking.
• Parchment paper makes lemon cranberry bars super easy to remove from the baking pan, but if you don’t have any, just grease your pan well with butter or cooking spray.

MORE SWEET HOLIDAY TREATS

• Christmas Chocolate Covered Strawberries
• Christmas Pretzels
• White Chocolate Chex Mix
• Pumpkin Whip Cream
• Cranberry Chutney
• Sweet Potato Brownies

If you make this recipe, I’d love for you to give it a quick review & star rating ★ below. Your comment and/or rating helps other readers!

Cranberry Lemon Bars

Cindy

These Cranberry Lemon Bars are sweet, tart, and the perfect addiction to your table this holiday season! Lemon bars are already a household favorite on their own, but adding a thin layer of fresh cranberry jam adds an invigorating twist your guests won't expect.

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 1 hour hr 10 minutes mins

Additional Time 3 hours hrs 30 minutes mins

Total Time 4 hours hrs 50 minutes mins

Course Dessert Recipes

Cuisine American

Servings 12 squares

Calories 508 kcal

Ingredients

  

Crust

• 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 cup unsalted butter melted

Cranberry Layer

• 12 ounces cranberries fresh or frozen
• ¾ cup granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons water
• 2 tablespoons lemon zest from 2 lemons

Lemon Layer

• 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
• ½ cup all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons lemon zest from 2 lemons
• 4 large eggs at room temperature
• ⅔ cup lemon juice from 3-4 large lemons
• powdered sugar for topping if desired

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 350°F/177°C. Line a 9×13-inch baking pan with parchment paper.
  
• In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, powdered sugar, and kosher salt. Stir in the melted butter.
  
• Add the dough into the prepared baking pan, breaking it into pieces. Then press the dough into the bottom of the pan until it is an even thickness.
  
• Bake at 350°F/177°C for 24-27 minutes, until the crust is golden brown. Let cool while preparing the fillings.
  
• To make the cranberry filling, place the fresh cranberries, granulated sugar, water and lemon zest in a medium saucepan.
  
• Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the berries burst and turn into a jammy consistency, about 7-8 minutes. Set aside.
  
• To make the lemon filling, whisk together the granulated sugar, flour, lemon zest, eggs and lemon juice until smooth and no clumps of flour remain.
  
• Spread the cranberry filling over the baked crust and spread until it’s an even layer.
  
• Pour the lemon filling over the cranberry layer.
  
• Bake at 350°F/177°C for 25-30 minutes, or until the lemon layer is mostly set but jiggles slightly when you shake the pan.
  
• Let cool to room temperature and then refrigerate for at least 3 hours before slicing. Dust with powdered sugar before serving if desired.
  

Notes

The nutrition values here are based on cutting these cranberry lemon squares into 12 pieces. You can cut them smaller if you like.

You’ll need approximately 4 medium/large lemons for this recipe. You’ll use both the zest and the juice of the lemons for various parts of the recipe.

You can use fresh or frozen cranberries in this recipe. No need to let frozen cranberries thaw before placing in the saucepan. 

Gently pour the lemon filling over the cranberry jam to try not to disturb it so that you get two distinct layers. Don’t fret too much over the cranberries popping up over the lemon layer though a bit. You’ll still have two separate layers.

You don’t necessarily need the parchment paper to line the pan. You can instead grease your pan with butter or cooking spray. I prefer the parchment paper because it makes it easy to remove them from the pan and place onto a cutting board to slice the bars when ready.

Keyword cranberry lemon bars