Over the years, my
family has enjoyed a wide variety of cookie traditions. From green cornflake
hollies to jam thumbprints to beautifully-decorated cutout cookies. I can’t
tell you how many millions of red hots I’ve meticulously placed and gallons of
colored icing I’ve spread and piped over the years!
¾ Cup water
1 (18.25-oz) package yellow cake mix
¾ Cup butter, melted
2 eggs
1 cup rolled oats
¾ Cup packed light brown sugar
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cinnamon
Directions:
In a saucepan over medium heat,
combine cranberries, white sugar, and water. Cook, stirring occasionally, until
all of the cranberries have popped and the mixture is thick (about 15 minutes).
Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
That said, the
recipe that I have shared below is one I found online a few years ago. It doesn’t
come with any family tradition story or memories, but it has become one of my
all-time favorites. It fulfills all my current baking requirements: Quick and
easy. It’s moist, and the cranberries lend a lovely tartness to counterbalance
all the sweets on the dessert table. You know, that zing in the corner of your
mouth that has you reaching for another one before you’ve even swallowed the
bite in your mouth!
Although I haven’t
ever deviated from the recipe, some fun options to try would include other pie
fillings or fruits (raspberry and tart cherry come to mind), or maybe even
different cake mixes. Chocolate and cranberries, yum! OOOoooo, go crazy with peanut
butter cookie mix with a grape jelly center! Red Velvet cake? Funfetti? I guess
the possibilities are endless, even though I love the original recipe as is!
Enjoy these
recipes we’re posting this week (and let us know how yours turn out!), and
click to participate in our rafflecopter! Note: All the Word Wranglers are participating, so be sure to click on ALL the giveaways!
CRANBERRY BARS
Ingredients:
1 (12-oz) package whole
cranberries
1 Cup white sugar¾ Cup water
1 (18.25-oz) package yellow cake mix
¾ Cup butter, melted
2 eggs
1 cup rolled oats
¾ Cup packed light brown sugar
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cinnamon
Side Note: This is how my
grandmother would make cranberry sauce for Thanksgiving, which not only worked
with the turkey meal, but was also enjoyed as a leftover sandwich spread, dolloped
on vanilla ice cream and/or cottage cheese (don’t judge too harshly… she also
served lime jello with pineapple chunks topped with a spoonful of mayo).
Back to the cookies, preheat oven
to 350 degrees F.
In a large bowl, mix together the
cake mix, melted butter, and eggs. Stir in the rest of the ingredients. Set
aside half the mixture, and spread the rest into the bottom of a 9x13 inch
baking dish. Pack down to form a solid crust, getting it as even as possible.
Spread the cooled cranberry
mixture over the crust. Then pinch off pieces of the remaining mixture and
place evenly over the cranberry layer.
Bake for 35-40 minutes in the
oven until the top is lightly browned. Cool in the pan for about 40 minutes
before slicing into bars.
Enjoy!
These look delicious!
ReplyDeleteMy goodness these look good, Ava! And about the lime jello thing, my mother and grandmother both made versions of it. It must have been very popular back in the day.
ReplyDelete