Cranberry Shortbread Bars

I've had a bag of fresh cranberries sitting in my fridge since before Thanksgiving, causing me great anxiety (luckily, they have a long shelf life); so I whipped up some cranberry shortbread bars for a Christmas party I was attending last night.

This recipe comes from, you guessed it, The Joy of Baking. The base of the bar - and the topping - is a basic shortbread recipe, with the slight variation of adding cornstarch and using brown sugar in place of white. (I also substituted whole wheat flour for all-purpose flour - more out of necessity than a deliberate choice - which produced a more crumbly, rustic-looking crust.)

Toffee Bars

 

I think I fell in love with bars & squares when I made my first magic bars back in high school (or was it middle school?) And while I like to entertain the thought that I've grown more sophisticated in my baking abilities since then, I often fall back on these recipes whenever I'm in a time crunch because they're easy, reliable, and always delicious.

This category of baking seems especially suited for holiday desserts.  Not quite a cookie and not quite a candy bar - or brownie, or pie, depending on what kind we're talking about - these heavenly layered treats have great range and versatility. Many classic desserts can be augmented to the compact size of a bar or square, from cheesecake to pecan pie to lemon tart, which not only puts a new spin on old favorites, it also makes the process of baking, transporting, and storage much easier.  And simplicity is something anyone can appreciate during these busy, blustery days.