Name: orange, ginger and almond bars
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 35 min
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 16
Cuisine: British
Ingredients: 250g plain (all purpose) flour; 1/4 teaspoon salt; 1/2 teaspoon baking powder; 1 teaspoon ground ginger; 225g caster sugar; Finely grated zest of one large orange; 100g chopped crystallised ginger; 75g roughly chopped almonds; One large egg, beaten; 175g butter, melted and slightly cooled

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These buttery, chewy orange ginger and almond bars are full of festive flavour! They are the perfect partner to a cup of tea!

Bar cookies must be one of the simplest, easiest bakes you can ever make. If you ever need to bake anything at short notice, look no further than a good old bar cookie recipe.

The recipe for these buttery, chewy ginger and orange bars has been hiding in the depths of the archives for a very long time. I thought it was about time they got the attention they deserve!

These cookie bars take less than 5 minutes to put together, but they really are SO good – one bite of these orange scented, gingery almond studded bars and you’ll be sold.

If you’re anything like me and go into a cookie baking frenzy every December, then this is a great recipe to add to your collection. I also love to make chocolate peppermint cookies, chocolate Fudge Crinkle Cookies, Scottish shortbread, Stilton and walnut biscuits and these white chocolate and cranberry cookies for family and friends.

I will admit though, I find it quite difficult to part with these bars! I just love them – they aren’t too sweet and are the perfect partner to a cup of strong, hot tea.

I first published this recipe way back in December 2014 as part of my “12 cookies of Christmas” collection. I remember bringing a selection of the cookies into my work at the time and these gingery-orange bars were voted the favourite. They didn’t hang around very long at all, which is always a good sign!

The crystallised ginger, orange and chopped almonds in these cookie bars really put me in mind of festive baking. They would make a lovely homemade Christmas gift for family and friends.

orange and almond nut bars on a red and white star plate. Christmas red and white ribbon can be seen in the background

ingredient list

(I want you to feel confident and prepared when making this recipe for the first time, so here’s a list of the ingredients. Keep scrolling to the bottom of the post to find printable recipe card!)

plain (all purpose) flour
baking powder
salt
ground ginger
orange zest
crystallised ginger
chopped whole almonds
1 egg
melted butter

three orange and almond cookie bars stacked on top of each other, surrounded by red and white Christmas ribbon, a pine cone, a red napkin and a small orange. More of the bars can be seen in the background on a black wire rack

recipe notes and commonly asked questions

Be sure to use real butter for these cookie bars. When I say real butter, I mean proper block butter, not baking margarine or spread.

When a recipe like this has just a handful of ingredients, the quality of the ingredients you use will make a huge difference to the bake. So I beg you, no margarine please! They won’t be the same at all.

If you like, sprinkle the bars with flaked almonds before baking.

can you freeze these orange bars?

Yes, they actually freeze quite well. Freeze the bars on a baking tray, then once they are solid, place in an airtight container or freezer bags. They will keep in the freezer for up to 3 months.

how long do these cookie bars keep?

The bars will last for up to 5 days. Store in an airtight container.

orange and almond cookie bars stacked on top of each other with a red napkin, red and white Christmas ribbon, a small orange and a pine cone. More cookie bars on a wire rack are in the background.

more cookie recipes that are ideal for christmas

Easy iced gingerbread cookies

white chocolate and macadamia nut cookies

spiced ginger cookies

easy Nutella cookies (just 4 ingredients!)

double chocolate Malteser cookies

orange, ginger and almond bars

Yield: makes 16 bars

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 35 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

These buttery, chewy orange ginger and almond bars are full of festive flavour! They are the perfect partner to a cup of tea!

Ingredients

250g plain (all purpose) flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground ginger
225g caster sugar
Finely grated zest of one large orange
100g chopped crystallised ginger
75g roughly chopped almonds
One large egg, beaten
175g butter, melted and slightly cooled

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 180C/160Fan/350F/Gas mark 4. Grease and line a 22cm square baking tin with baking paper.
Mix the flour, salt, baking powder and ground ginger together in a large bowl. Stir in the caster sugar, orange zest, crystallised ginger pieces and chopped almonds. Pour in the beaten egg and cooled melted butter and mix with a wooden spoon to combine. When you have a smooth dough, press into the lined baking tin and smooth the surface. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until lightly browned and set around the edges.
Leave to cool completely on a wire rack before dusting with icing sugar and cutting into squares.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 16 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 176Total Fat: 12gSaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 35mgSodium: 148mgCarbohydrates: 18gFiber: 1gSugar: 15gProtein: 2g

Calories and nutritional information are provided by a third party application and should be viewed as indicative figures only.