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Cranberry Shortbread Bars with Walnuts {GF, Vegan}

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Thank you to Nuts.com for sponsoring this post and donating to my local food pantry this holiday season.

7 ingredient 30 minute Cranberry Shortbread Bars are topped with walnuts and date caramel for the ultimate healthier guilt free dessert. Vegan, Gluten Free and Refined Sugar Free.

cranberry shortbread bars

Everywhere I look everyone seems to be knee deep in holiday cookie baking. Everyone is posting about cookies, or wanting to eat cookies, or wishing somebody baked them cookies. Now, as a non cookie loving person, I’m currently feeling like a bit of an outcast.

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Personally, I don’t have anything against cookies – I just never grew up eating them, my mom never baked them, and I only learned about the classic chocolate chip cookie from staying at friends’ houses.

But, to go with the trend, to get into that holiday baking spirit, I had to at least share some sort of baked goods, right? Last week it was my coffee pecan pie bars, and this week it’s cranberry shortbread bars.

While I feel perfectly comfortable making all sorts of savory dishes, when it comes to sweets and baking, I have slightly less experience. This is going to change. I’m starting to experiment more with various flours, allowing me to make all sorts of different desserts that will be gluten-free, vegan and refined sugar free as well.

If I’m going to be baking, it’s only for the healthier desserts.

And that brings us to coconut flour. Have you cooked with coconut flour before? Coconut flour is a great grain free alternative to regular flour and is made from dried coconut meat which has then been ground. It is high in fiber and low in carbs. A win win if you ask me.

Coconut flour was to be the star ingredients of the crust for these cranberry shortbread bars. As for the other ingredients, I used:

cranberry shortbread bars ingredients

  • maple syrup
  • coconut oil
  • dried cranberries
  • walnuts
  • dates
  • lemon

One thing you need to know when baking with coconut flour is that it is super absorbent, meaning you don’t need much of it. As a general rule of thumb you’ll only need 1/4 to 1/3 cup coconut flour to replace 1 cup of regular flour in a recipe.

cranberry shortbread bars ingredients from nuts.com

For all my specialty flours, nuts, and dried fruit I go to Nuts.com, a family-owned company selling with high quality nuts, dried fruit, snacks, and pantry essentials. They carry over 3,000 products including artisan and hard-to-find products as well as hundreds of certified gluten-free and organic items. And this holiday season they have been generous enough to donate hundreds of dollars worth of staples to my local food pantry as well as host a giveaway right here on this blog!

To make the crust for these cranberry shortbread bars you just need to beat the maple syrup and coconut oil until smooth and creamy, before adding in the coconut flour. Mix by hand and pat down into a baking dish or pie pan (if you’re me and do not own any rectangular baking dishes) and bake for 10 minutes.

cranberry shortbread bars before being cut drizzled with date caramel

I’m telling you, this dessert comes together in no time! For the topping make the date caramel, by literally just blending dates in a high speed blender (see pictures in my caramel cheesecake post). For the star of these cranberry shortbread bars you’ll want to mix crushed walnuts with chopped cranberries, lemon zest and lemon juice.

cranberry shortbread bars with date caramel

Once the crust is baked, let it cool, add a thin layer of date caramel, sprinkle with the cranberry walnut mix and thin drizzle more date caramel on top.

That’s all you need for these delicious cranberry shortbread bars with crushed walnuts. Cut into bars and take a big bite.

taking a bite out of cranberry shortbread bars

I personally loved how delicate the coconut flour shortbread crust came out. With only three key ingredients the crust could not be easier to make. Walnuts and cranberries make a great combination – especially when mixed with lemon zest this made for the perfect topping. And then a drizzle of date caramel really tops things off!

And now I’m happy to share a GIVEAWAY! Nuts.com is giving away $100 of product on their site. Be sure to enter below!

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4.71 from 17 votes
cranberry shortbread bars
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Cranberry Shortbread Bars with Walnuts {GF, Vegan}
Prep Time
15 mins
Cook Time
10 mins
Total Time
25 mins
 

7 ingredient 30 minute Cranberry Shortbread Bars are topped with walnuts and date caramel for the ultimate healthier guilt free dessert. Vegan, Gluten Free and Refined Sugar Free.

Course: Dessert
Cuisine: gluten free, Healthy, Vegan
Servings: 8
Calories: 273 kcal
Author: Vicky
Ingredients
  • 1/4 cup coconut oil
  • 1/4 cup maple syrup
  • 1 cup coconut flour
  • 1 cup walnuts crushed
  • 1/2 cup dried cranberries chopped
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice
  • 1 tbsp lemon zest
  • 12 whole dates pitted
Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. 


  2. In a bowl combine maple syrup and coconut oil. Beat until smooth and creamy. Add coconut flour and mix.  

  3. Pat the shortbread crust into a rectangular baking dish or pie pan. Bake for 10 minutes.

  4. In a bowl combine walnuts, cranberries and lemon zest and juice. 

  5. To make the date caramel - place dates in a high powered blender and process until smooth. Add a bit of water or coconut milk to thin it out a bit and help it blend, as needed. 

  6. Allow the shortbread crust to cool. Remove from baking dish. Top with thin layer of date caramel. Top date caramel with the cranberry walnut mix. 

  7. Drizzle date caramel on top. 

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Comments

  3. I like the pies that always come around during this season; pumpkin, apple, blueberry, etc. It;s always so beautiful to see these desserts on the table.

    Reply

  5. One of my favorite desserts is the simplest: My grandfather always ate brick cheese and watermelon for dessert. The refreshing, sweet melon and the salty cheese is an enduring taste memory.

    Reply

  14. My favorite holiday dessert is white chocolate Christmas Crack with cereal, pretzels, M&Ms, peanuts and white chocolate.

    Reply

  42. My mom’s little nut roll cookies. They are so much better than the normal nut roll but it kills your back rolling out all the little balls. Of course I have to quadruple it because everyone loves them. Haven’t made them in years, I think it’s time to make some again. Miss you mom!

    Reply

  61. Pecans, Pecan pie, pralines, and walnut fudge. I didn’t used to care for nuts in my youth but I love them and their health benefits now!! oh and brownies with walnuts!!

    Reply

  66. My favorite holiday dessert is White Christmas Peppermint Layer Cake that I love to bake with my kids. Happy holidays!

    Reply

  76. My favorite holiday desert is pumpkin chocolate chip cookies. Unless peppermint hot cocoa counts, that’s my fuel all December!

    Reply

  82. Sweetpotatoe cupcakes with buttercream/cream cheese frosting and pralines on top omg sooooooo yuuuuuuuuuummmmmmmmmyyyyyyyyy⛄❄❄⛄

    Reply

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Hi, I’m Vicky!

VICKY

About Avocado Pesto

I love to create unique, healthy recipes for people who want to maintain a variety of diets, like Gluten Free, Dairy Free, Vegan, Vegetarian, etc. Read more about how I can help you plan your meals!

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