Skinny and Healthy Starbucks Cranberry Bliss Bars

This is the time of year when the coffee store that sits on many a corner in just about every city in America and beyond, offers seasonal bakery items.  One of the most anticipated is the Cranberry Bliss Bar.  I could not imagine what the big deal was until I tried it.  It really IS delicious. Oh My Gosh!

Of course I believe that anything with a healthy dose of cream cheese is guaranteed to be delicious - right?  And this is no exception to my rule!  These are a "bit" healthier with whole wheat flour, sucanat instead of brown sugar, and egg whites and applesauce instead of oil or butter.

This is the second time I have made them but the first time with fresh white wheat flour. I definitely would do this again and it has already been requested by my daughter who will be visiting for a few days right before Christmas.  The "Mom please make" list is growing, but that's fine with me. I thoroughly enjoy baking, especially at this time of year.

I hope you enjoy this recipe - I chose the Sucanat because I am trying very hard to keep things healthier and as pure as possible, but you could substitute with Truvia Baking Blend or other Stevia based baking blends to reduce the calories and sugar.  I love having options!

Cranberry Bliss Bars (aka Starbucks special seasonal delight!)

adapted from Skinnytaste

Bars:

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour (I used white whole wheat)*

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. ground cinnamon

2/3 c.  Sucanat (or light brown sugar, packed)
2/3 c. organic cane sugar or 1/3 c. Truvia Baking Blend

2 large egg whites
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce

2 tsp. vanilla extract

2/3  cup dried cranberries, chopped

2/3 cup white chocolate chips

=================================

Frosting and Topping:

1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened (low fat can be used)

1/2 cup powdered sugar, sifted (I used organic)

2 ounces white baking chocolate, melted (I used Ghirardelli's)

3/4 cup dried cranberries, chopped
1 tsp. vanilla extract

* you can use 2 c. all purpose flour (total) instead of 1 c. white and 1 c. wheat

Preheat the oven to 350.  Lightly grease  a 13x9" pan.

In a medium bowl, blend together the flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon together.  

In a large bowl, whisk together the Sucanat, cane sugar, egg whites, applesauce, and vanilla until light and fluffy.

Add the dry mixture to the egg mixture (in two additions) and blend well with a whisk.  Fold in the chopped dried cranberries and white chocolate chips.  The batter will be thick.

Pour into the greased pan and spread evenly.  Bake for 10-14 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes clean. Do not overbake.  Cool completely on a wire rack before frosting.

Oven ready....

Cooling.... waiting for the frosting...

For the frosting, beat the cream cheese (light is fine if you prefer), vanilla and the powdered sugar until fluffy.  Frost.

Sprinkle the chopped dried cranberries over the frosting and then drizzle the melted chocolate over the top. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Cut into bars.

Healthy decadence??

I hope everyone had a very happy Thanksgiving and that the month of December is full of wonderful tine with family and friends.  I plan to share many more recipes and cards in the weeks to come.  Stay tuned!

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Not always successful....

My granddaughters LOVE Nutella.  I don't mean just LIKE it......... they LOVE it as in they would happily eat it at every meal, especially the younger one! When she (Haley) was little, she loved peanut butter - well as long as you didn't call it that!!  LOL..  If you said ," Would you like a peanut butter and jelly sandwich?"  she would quickly respond, " Peanut and jelly - no butter!!"  I know  - I still laugh thinking about that cute little two year old looking so seriously at me!  She is now almost SEVEN!  And NOW, she will have NOTHING to do with peanut no butter, unless you hide it well.

So this was my attempt to hide it, but I totally forgot about the miniature Reese's peanut butter cups!  Oh well.......  I was too committed to make this wonderful recipe for Nutella Swirled Peanut Butter Banana Bread!  I am a fan of Sally's Baking Addiction and am in awe of her photos.  

So I armed myself with the ingredients intent on success.  I am ever grateful for one of the first things my Mother taught me when I began cooking - to take all of your ingredients out first and put them away as you use them.  Then you won't wonder if you forgot to put something in the recipe.  It has saved me on many occasions when I have been interrupted.  So here are the main players (minus a few ingredients that are on the other counter  - oops!)

I am not a gourmet cook or professional baker by any means, but I do have more successes than failures in the kitchen and I really do enjoy it, especially when I have someone around to enjoy it!

How scrumptious does this look now??

Look at those mini peanut butter cups!! OMG!  Yes I few just accidentally slipped into my mouth while I was peeling off  the papers - quality control check of course!

And then the star of the recipe for Haley............NUTELLA!

The recipe said heaping so I took it literally!!  In retrospect, that may have been my downfall - but it looked good at the  time!  And it swirled in beautifully!

 Fifty minutes later I checked it several times with my cake tester and it came out clean.  I thought  I was good to go.  Looks and smells fabulous

 Well all went well until I took it out of the pan.  Even though I tested it, the center caved in - kind of how my heart felt as I watched it happen.  This picture is painful......

See the crack in the middle??  Yes I was hoping the mini peanut butter cups would soften the structural blemish and you wouldn't mind as much!

The recipe is fabulous - it was the cook who blew it this time!
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