This Better Than Starbucks Cranberry Bliss Bread has all the bells and whistles of the original bars, but in an irresistible pound cake form. Skip the coffee shop and stay home and bake!
I delight in everything about this season, and even though it’s a cliche, I still get a warm rush when Starbuck’s brings out the pumpkin lattes. But I think everyone can agree that while their coffee is pretty fantastic, their baked stuff has taken a nosedive in recent years. There was a time when I was happy to splurge on maple oat nut scones and pumpkin breads, but not anymore. Now I grab my coffee solo, because I know I’ve got an even better treat waiting for me at home.
The base of this ‘bread’ is a rich buttery cake made with part whole wheat flour and studded with dried cranberries and white chocolate chips. The thick vanilla frosting is covered with more cranberries, and then the whole thing is drizzled with white chocolate. It’s fun, festive, and way better than the dried out squares in the case.
Part of the appeal of the cranberry bliss franchise is that gorgeous top. It just screams holiday!
TIP: White chocolate can be difficult to melt. Adding a teaspoon of vegetable oil to the chocolate before melting can help.
Ingredients
- 1 cup flour
- 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 stick (1/2 cup, 113 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup buttermilk
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries, plus a handful more for scattering over the frosting
- 1/2 cup white chocolate chips
- 2 cups confectioner's sugar, sifted
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- milk or cream to thin
- 1/2 cup white chocolate chips
- 1 tsp coconut or vegetable oil
Instructions
- Set oven to 350F
- Whisk together the flours, soda, powder, and salt. Set aside.
- Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, and then the vanilla.
- Gently mix in the dry ingredients alternately with the buttermilk, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients.
- Fold in the cranberries and chocolate chips.
- Turn the batter into a greased standard (81/2 x 4 1/2) loaf pan. I like to line it with a sheet of parchment paper to make it easy to remove the cake after baking. Bake for 55 minutes to an hour until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out without wet batter clinging to it. Don't over bake, check it early. Let the cake cool before you frost it.
- To make the frosting mix the sugar with enough milk or cream to create a thick spreadable consistency.. Blend in the vanilla. Spread over the top of the cooled cake. Scatter with dried cranberries.
- Make the chocolate drizzle by melting the chocolate and the oil in a small (clean and dry!) microwave safe bowl. Microwave for 30 seconds and stir to melt. If necessary microwave for another few seconds, but be careful not to over do it.
- When the chocolate is smooth, take a spoon and drizzle it all over the top of the cake in a criss-cross pattern.
Don’t forget to pin this amazing Cranberry Bliss Bread!
Follow your bliss with more from some of my favorite bloggers —
In cookie form from Gimme Some Oven
and a low carb and gluten free version from All Day I Dream About Food
66 Comments
Jacquie
October 10, 2018 at 7:02 amFantastic recipe. I perfected the bars a number of years ago. A couple of suggestions, 1. replace some of the water/milk in the frosting with lemon juice 2. Add one tbsp grated orange zest in the batter. Occasionally I added chopped pistachios to the top. The color combo with the cranberries is very holiday festive and the sweet-salty contrast is yummy. I agree, the bars dry out far too quickly, thank you for doing the legwork on this recipe. They are my daughters fave
Sue
October 10, 2018 at 8:46 amThanks so much Jacquie ~ I like your tweaks :)
Lana
October 9, 2018 at 1:56 pmHi
Just found this Amazing recipe. I LOVE CRANBERRIES . Can I use all purpose flour instead of white and wheat flour?
Thanks
Sue
October 9, 2018 at 3:05 pmYes, you sure can Lana, hope you love it!