What in the world do you do with all that leftover cranberry sauce from Thanksgiving? Sometimes I make Turkey sandwiches, sometimes I eat it out of the bowl, but most of the time I make my favorite dessert: Paleo Cranberry Bars.

If you love cranberries like I do, check out my Gluten Free Cranberry Crumb Bar recipe and learn a little more about the health benefits of cranberries here.

But if you are looking for something extra nutritious and grain free, you’ve come to the right place. These bars are crunchy and buttery on the bottom thanks to the generous use of coconut oil. They have a gooey sweet tart cranberry filling and a cinnamon crumb top. The most delicious way to celebrate post-Thanksgiving!

Now, the most important part of these bars is the cranberry sauce. I suggest making your own. It’s very simple to do and tastes a thousand times better than the canned stuff. Need a recipe? Check out my favorite one here. You could also try these with your favorite jam, but there is something about that tart flavor that really makes these shine.

If you are vegan, please note that my cranberry sauce recipes uses 1/4c honey. Just substitute it with your favorite sweetener (agave would work nicely) and there you have it. Vegan sauce + cranberry bars.

golden brown crust — *Pre-bake for a perfect golden crust*

The first step to making these bars is creating a delicious crust. In order to make the recipe more simplified, I have you mix all the ingredients together and just separate out 3/4c for the crumb topping. Press the rest into an 8×8 or 9×9 inch pan and bake until golden. See this picture for references.

Next, after the crust cools a bit, you spread your favorite cranberry sauce over the top.

The last step is to sprinkle the remaining crumb mixture over the cranberry layer and throw it all back in the oven for 30 minutes or so. The top will be golden and the cranberry sauce will be a bit bubbly.

Let the whole thing cool completely before you cut your bars and store the leftover in the fridge.

My family loved these so much I had to make 2 batches! I hope yours does too. Enjoy!

Paleo Cranberry Bars

The perfect recipe for your leftover cranberry sauce! Gluten, grain, dairy, and refined sugar free. Vegan option added as well!

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Total Time 45

Course Dessert

Servings 9 people

Ingredients

Crust + Crumb

2 cups almond flour
1 tbs coconut flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 pinch sea salt
1/4 cup coconut sugar
1 tsp vanilla bean paste
1/2 cup coconut oil, solid
1/4 cup maple syrup

Topping

1 cup homemade cranberry sauce see blog post for link to my favorite recipe

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix all ingredients except cranberry sauce in a large bowl. You should cut in the coconut oil until it resembles a crumb mixture.
Remove 3/4c of the mix to use as the crumb topping. Press the remaining mix into a square 8×8 or 9×9 inch pan lined with parchment paper. Bake 10-15 minutes or until crust is golden brown.
Remove from oven and let cool. Then spread 1c cranberry sauce over the top in an even layer. Sprinkle with crumb mixture. Return to the oven for about 30 minutes or until cumb topping has browned and the sauce is hot and a bit bubbly. Let cool completely before cutting into bars. Store in the fridge.

Notes

Recipe by https://www.thenutramom.com

Notes:

This recipe is VEGAN except for a bit of honey used in my cranberry sauce. Feel free to use another cranberry sauce recipe or sub agave syrup in mine to make these bars completely vegan.

If you don’t have cranberry sauce, you could try this with your favorite jam or fruit spread.