When I think of Thanksgiving and Fall desserts, there are two traditional flavors that come to mind for me. Pumpkin (bread, cheesecake, pie, etc) and anything cranberry with orange. I am not a traditionalist when it comes to cranberry sauce with my turkey, but I love cranberry based desserts. In the past I have made cranberry, orange, and white chocolate cookies, cranberry orange scones, and my moms go to cranberry, orange, apple, and walnut fruit salad. This year I decided to try my hand at some cranberry, orange, and apple oat bars and they turned out so good that I am going to share the recipe with you. The fruit filling is a little tart thanks to the cranberries and pairs so well with the sweet oat crust. And although they have enough sugar in them to technically be a dessert, I have been enjoying them with a nice cup of tea in the morning as well.

 

Cranberry, Orange, and Apple Oat Bars

For the crust and topping:

1 cup plus 6 tbsp. softened butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
zest of one large orange
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 cups flour
3 cups rolled oats 

For the Cranberry, Orange, and Apple Filling:

3 cups cranberries
1 cup chopped pealed apple (I used honeycrisp)
Juice from the orange that you zested
2/3 cup sugar
 

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Cream the butter and sugar then add the eggs, vanilla, and zest. Add the baking soda, salt, and flour and mix to combine. Then add in the oats and combine. Take half of the oat mixture and press onto the bottom of a greased 9″ by 13″ pan. This layer will be very thin. You just need enough batter to cover the bottom making sure that none of the pan shows through.

Combine the cranberry filling ingredients into a small sauce pan and heat over medium low heat for about 10-12 minutes or until all the cranberries have popped open. Transfer mixture to a food processor or blender and blend until just smooth. Spread the cranberry filling over the oat crust and then dollop on the remaining oat mixture.

Bake at 375°F for about 30 minutes or until the oat crust is golden brown. Let cool for 20-30 minutes and slice into bars.

 
What are your traditional Thanksgiving desserts? Do you like cranberry based desserts as much as me?