Cranberry Curd Bars
By Vaughn Vreeland · 3 hours 40 minutes · 24 servings
A recipe by Vaughn Vreeland from NYT Cooking: its ingredients and steps as published. The introduction, tips, photos and reader notes are on the original.
Details
- ⏲️ Prep time: 10 minutes
- 🍳 Cook time: 3 hours 30 minutes
- ⏱️ Total time: 3 hours 40 minutes
- 🍽️ Servings: 24
Ingredients
For the crust:
- 6 tablespoons/85 grams unsalted butter, softened, plus more for the pan
- ¼ cup/50 grams granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoons/21 grams powdered sugar
- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal)
- 2 cups/224 grams hazelnut or almond flour (see Tip)
For the cranberry curd:
- 2 oranges
- 12 ounces/340 grams cranberries (3 cups)
- 1 cup/200 grams granulated sugar
- Pinch of salt
- ½ cup/113 grams unsalted butter, softened
- 3 large eggs plus 2 large egg yolks
Directions
- Butter a 9-by-13-inch baking pan (preferably metal) and line it with parchment so there are a couple inches of overhang on the long sides. In a medium bowl using a wooden spoon or silicone spatula, mix together the butter, granulated sugar, powdered sugar and salt until no lumps remain. Mix in the hazelnut flour until it’s incorporated and smooth, with no pockets of butter.
- Scatter the crust mixture into the prepared pan and use the back of a spoon or a flat-bottomed dry measuring cup to press it into an even, compact layer. Use a fork to poke holes every few inches in the crust (to ensure it doesn’t puff up too much). Freeze the crust for 15 minutes while you heat your oven to 350 degrees.
- Bake the crust until it’s evenly golden brown, 22 to 26 minutes. Let cool completely while you make the curd.
- Using a vegetable peeler, carefully remove the zest (orange part only) from 1 orange in strips, then juice both oranges until you get ½ cup juice. In a medium heavy saucepan over medium-high heat, combine the orange zest, ½ cup orange juice, cranberries, granulated sugar and salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the cranberries burst and reduce to a jammy consistency, about 10 minutes.
- Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the butter. (At this stage, you can use an immersion or standard blender to blend the cranberries, which will make them easier to strain and result in a more vibrant curd. If using a standard blender, pulse to minimize steam build-up and splatters.)
- Press the cranberry mixture through a fine-mesh strainer into a large bowl, scraping the underside of the strainer every so often so the mixture can pass through more easily. Discard the cranberry solids (or save to stir into yogurt or put on toast). Whisk the whole eggs and yolks into the cranberry mixture until no streaks remain.
- Pour the cranberry curd evenly over the cooled crust and bake until it’s slightly jiggly in the center but mostly set, 17 to 20 minutes. Let cool completely, then refrigerate for 2 hours (and up to 3 days) before serving. To serve, use the parchment overhang to lift the bars out of the baking pan and cut into squares.
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