Cranberry and orange are two of my favorite flavor combinations. That love affair started when I was a little girl living with my parents. My Mom would always make a cranberry bread each and every holiday season. It is by far my favorite indulgence at Christmas time. I am still working on her to let me share that recipe with y'all but in the meantime I wanted to create a recipe with the same flavors.  My Mom's birthday was yesterday so of course, this is the cake I made for her. We had a little get together for her and this cake got rave reviews from everyone, even the little ones. 



My happy place is when I am in the kitchen creating and baking. During the Christmas season, one of the first things I do in the morning is pull out a couple sticks of butter to soften on the counter. I always have good intentions but some days I usually place that butter back in the fridge for another day. My husbands usual response is, "what are you making today?" 


Sour Cream Cranberry Pound Cake

I am excited to share with you today a guest post from one of the sweetest people I know. Kay from Cooking with K and I met a couple months ago and immediately formed a wonderful friendship. Please give her a big welcome.


Hi! I am Kay from over at CookingwithK.net.  I live in East Texas with Southern roots.    I love sharing recipes that have been passed down through the years.

I am so happy to be guest posting for Melissa today.  I wish we lived next door to each other so we can share our recipes with a morning cup of coffee like we did at the Southern Food Bloggers Retreat.


Today, I am sharing Cranberry Raspberry Crumb Bars.  I love the combination of tartness in the cranberries and sweetness in the raspberries all baked together in a buttery crust.

These Cranberry Raspberry Crumb Bars are super easy to make, and when cut into mini squares, they are just right for a cookie tray.   The next time you need a delicious treat for a special occasion, remember these Cranberry Raspberry Crumb Bars.  Enjoy!

Cranberry Raspberry Crumb Bars

3 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup butter (2 sticks), cold and cubed
2 eggs
1/4 cup milk
 teaspoon vanilla
6 oz. fresh cranberries
6 oz. fresh raspberries
3 tablespoons coarse sugar

Preheat oven 350 degrees F.  Butter a 9 x 13 inch baking dish; set aside.

In the bowl of a food processor, add flour, granulated sugar, and baking powder.  Pulse a couple of times to mix together.  Add butter and pulse until mixture is pea size.

In a small bowl, slightly beat eggs and milk.  Add to flour mixture while pulsing.  Pulse only until dough slightly starts to come together.  Do not over mix.

In the prepared dish, pat two-thirds of the dough in the bottom and all the way to sides.

In bowl, toss cranberries and raspberries with vanilla.  Distribute cranberries and raspberries on top of the bottom crust.

Using the 1/3 remainder dough, pinch small size crumbs and distribute across the blackberries.

Sprinkle with coarse sugar over crumb topping.

Bake for 45-50 minutes until bubbly and golden brown.  Remove and place on a cooling rack until completely cool to the touch.  Slice into bars.

The past couple of weeks I have been battling some health issues and have not been cooking at all. A trip to the ER didn't reveal anything but what they said was an intestinal virus.  Last Saturday it became apparent what was wrong. I had a tooth that had broken some time back and I was not having any issues with it, I just kind of ignored it. I know, shame on me but I am guilty of doing for everyone else and putting myself last so it just was not on my agenda to call the dentist. I will not lie to you, I do not like going to the dentist. I have had my fair share of issues with my teeth, I am sure most of them have a filling or two in them somewhere. I should have known better and trust me I will from now on. I went to the dentist last Monday and was told I needed to have two root canals, not one but two!!  Really, why do I do this to myself?  After I left there the pain became unbearable. I spent hours in miserable pain and in tears because nothing was helping. I even considered pulling them out by myself. I spent many hours crying and just existing. On Thursday I had my first root canal scheduled, and I was nervous. Will this help, what about the other one?  The specialist I went to said he could understand why I was hurting because it was definitely inflamed. After that my pain level changed and wouldn't you know it the other tooth settled down. I am still sore and have to go back to have the other one pulled. My insurance will not cover both of them in one year so financially I could only save one tooth. Today is the first day that I have not had to take some kind of pain meds and I cannot express to you how grateful I am for that.  I am still a little sore but anxious to put this behind me and move on. I will have to reschedule the extraction due to now I have a head cold.  Thankfully, as of now it is not giving me any problems. Praying that continues until I can get it done.

Anyway, I decided to get in the kitchen today. I baked cookies all afternoon and then shared them with my family. They were more than happy to get a care package from me. When fall gets here my mind immediately goes to my Mom's cranberry bread. This is a staple all through the fall and Christmas season. My Mom has asked me not to share that recipe yet so I decided to do a spin on my White Chocolate Orange Dream Cookies and add craisins. I think these turned out wonderful and will be a great addition to my goodies this year.


Orange Cranberry Kissed Cookies


1 cup butter- soft
3/4 cup craisins

Shared at
Lady Behind the Curtain Cast Party Wednesday
Weekend Potluck @ The Country Cook
Recipe for My Boys Thursday Treasures
Totally Tasty Tuesdays @ Mandy's Recipe Box
Gooseberry Patch Recipe Round Up
Dash to the Holiday Cookie Party