Cranberry Chocolate Chip Bars

SERVES: 20

CHILL TIME: 2 Hr

COOK TIME: 40 Min

You don't have to wait for autumn, 'cause it's always the season for cranberries...and boy, can they ever spark up a plain old chocolate chip bar!

What You'll Need

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
1 cup packed light brown sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cup uncooked old-fashioned oats
2 teaspoons grated orange peel
2 cups (12 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup sweetened dried cranberries (see Note)
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

What to Do

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a 9- x 13-inch baking pan with cooking spray.
In a large bowl, with an electric beater on medium speed, cream butter and brown sugar until smooth. Beat in flour, oats, and orange peel; mixture will be crumbly. With a spoon, stir in chocolate chips and cranberries. Reserve 2 cups of the mixture and press remaining mixture into prepared baking pan. Bake 15 minutes.
In a medium bowl, with an electric beater on medium speed, beat cream cheese until smooth then gradually beat in sweetened condensed milk. Pour over hot crust and sprinkle with reserved oat mixture. Bake 25 to 30 minutes, until center is set. Allow to cool then cover and chill for at least 2 hours before serving. Cut into bars and serve.

Note

Sweetened dried cranberries look like raisins, but they're cranberries that are dried like raisins. They can usually be found near the raisins in the supermarket, but if you can't find them, you could always use raisins, or leave them out completely.