Cranberry White Chocolate Pumpkin Bars {Vegan Option}

Cranberry White Chocolate Pumpkin Bars are a “healthier” easy dessert! Gluten free cranberry white chocolate bars with pumpkin, that are made egg free! Super quick to whip up in under an hour! A great holiday dessert or for every day snacking.

healthy pumpkin bars with cranberries and white chocolate

**NOTE: This Healthy Pumpkin Bars recipe was originally published in Fall 2014. I updated the photos and the refined the recipe. Now I’m republishing the updated recipe because it’s WAY better!

We are SOOO in the thick of holiday gift giving and chocolate’s galore! In fact, my husband just received a delivery full of white chocolate and other goodies.

You see My husband’s (aka Kiwi Cotter) favorite candy of all time is white chocolate, the milk bar brand from New Zealand to be exact. And every time we head into off season, he gets a care package from his “mum” with white chocolate included. Full proof on his instagram feed!

I’d say chocolate is a pretty good way to enjoy the season, yes?

white chocolate chips and dried cranberries

Vegan cranberry white chocolate pumpkin bars on a baking sheet, drizzled with white chocolate

Well, I like to keep that little ritual going but also add in my “healthified” and “gluten free” version to keep the body from going into sugar shock. Yes, it is do-able! All you have to do adjust a few ingredients to make that treat stretch further (nutrition wise). Now, please hear me out.

This Healthier Cranberry White Chocolate Pumpkin Bars recipe is by no means SUPER CLEAN (eek, don’t like that word).

But similar to how I use word “detox,” I gotta be careful how we use the word “healthlified” and “clean eating.”

Healthier Goodness in Pumpkin Bars

soft pumpkin bars drizzled with white chocolate

To me, healthifying a chocolate pumpkin bar recipe means focusing on REAL ingredients, and maybe even adding a secret superfood ingredient. Yep. That works!

What real foods you ask? I mean no preservatives, natural sugars, and healthy fats to round it out! Which is what these are my “semi-healthy” Holiday Cranberry White Chocolate Pumpkin Bars!

I mean they are gluten free, vegan friendly, eggless, but not a HEALTH food. Haha, does that make sense? Basically a dessert bar made allergy friendly. And a much better way to spread out that white chocolate consumption. Just sayin…

I can sense your sweet tooth agreeing with me!

dessert bars with white chocolate, cranberries, and pumpkin

Pumpkin Bars Recipe Ingredients

What’s in these super moist pumpkin bars?

Pumpkin puree
Cranberries
White chocolate chips (Or you can use vegan white chocolate)
Almond/coconut milk
tiger nut flour, which is a resistant starch and great for the gut flora (thank you Lucie for getting me hooked).

Shhh… just don’t tell the other you added in a good for you ingredient. You see, you get your cranberry white chocolate fix, in pumpkin bar form, and it be ~~GOOD~~ better for you!

Oh, I should also mention, if you are not vegan, then the white chocolate baking bar from Ghirardelli is great because it has no other additives. Just milk fat, sugar, cocoa butter, etc.

You can also make this with dried cranberries without any added sugar. That’s only if you want to take that healthfieid approach up a notch. I won’t judge you if don’t. NEVER EVER!

Now let’s get our Gluten Free Cranberry White Chocolate Pumpkin Bars a BAKING before Christmas!

Cranberry White Chocolate Pumpkin Bars {Gluten Free}

Author: Lindsay Cotter
Prep Time: 10 min
Cook Time: 30 min
Total Time: 40 minutes
Yield: 9- 12

Print Recipe

Description

Healthier Cranberry White chocolate bars that taste like dessert! These gluten free cranberry white chocolate bars are made eggless with pumpkin and are super easy to make! Great for holidays or every day snacking!

Ingredients

2 cups GF flour (Gluten Free Multipurpose flour works Great. I love Bob Red Mills 1:1 ration GF flour)
2 tbsp of a starch flour. Like potato starch, tapioca starch, or arrowroot. I actually used [url] tigernut flour starch ∞http://amzn.to/2ewcXA9[/url] (a new grain free flour). It gives it a nutty flavor is a great grain flour alternative.
1/2 cup Coconut Sugar (or Brown sugar) 2/3 cup if you want extra sweet
1/3 cup pumpkin
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp cinnamon
2 –3 tsp baking powder
dash of salt
1 cup coconut or almond milk
2 tbsp coconut oil
1/3 – 1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/3 –1/2 cup white chocolate chips or [url] vegan white chocolate ∞http://amzn.to/2hTDcPT[/url]
Optional – xylitol sugar in place of the coconut sugar to reduce sugar intake

Instructions

Combine your dry ingredients first. Mix well.
Then mix in your pumpkin, milk, vanilla extract, and coconut oil until batter is smooth. Make sure batter is not clumpy. Use a mixer if you need do.
Fold in your cranberries and white chocolate chips/chopped bits
pour into 9×9 baking dish (greased) and bake at 350F for 25-30 minutes or until lightly brown on top and center is baked through.
After cooled, drizzle melted baking chocolate (or vegan chocolate) on top.