Orange Creamsicle Bars are chewy, citrus treats that taste like summer sunshine. White chocolate chips turn these orange bars into creamsicle bars ideal for snacks, picnics, and care packages.
Why you'll love this recipe
- This is a two bowl recipe with no mixer needed.
- Orange bars stay soft and chewy for more than a week.
- These bars are sure to remind you of the ice cream bars from the Good Humor ice cream truck of your childhood.
- Heat resistant ingredients make Orange Creamsicle Bars great for summer care packages or outside adventures.
Orange Creamsicle Bars have a chewy, brownie-like texture and fresh orange flavor with vanilla creaminess.
Decorate the bars by adding orange decorating sugar before baking or leave the bars plain and add powdered sugar on top of the brownies later.
Optional orange icing can be drizzled on top of either the decorating sugar or powdered sugar, but isn't recommended for shipping in hot weather.
Along with some Orange Cookies, these orange brownies would be great snacks to add to an Orange Care Package. With heat resistant ingredients, the bright color and flavors are a gift of sunshine you can send to orange lovers any time of year.
Ingredients
Instructions
This is an overview of the instructions. The full instructions are in the recipe card below.
- Combine the ingredients to form the batter.
- Spread the batter evenly in a foil lined 9" x 9" pan.
- Sprinkle orange decorating sugar onto the batter (optional).
- Bake until golden brown.
Storage
Store at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 10 days.
Tips and variations
- The white chocolate chips tend to sink to the bottom of the pan while baking. For best results, use mini chips (available at Whole Foods) or chop regular sized chips into smaller pieces to minimize this.
- If fresh orange zest and juice are a concern for extreme hot weather shipping, use 2 teaspoons of pure orange extract instead.
- For more bars with more intense orange coloring, add a couple of drops of orange food coloring to the batter.
- Three suggestions for topping/decorating these bars: sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving, add white or orange large crystal decorating sugar before baking, add orange icing over plain or sugar decorated bars.
- To make your own orange sugar, put 3 tablespoons of white, large crystal decorating sugar in a ziplock bag with 1 drop of orange gel food coloring, massage the bag until the sugar is uniformly orange, then let the sugar dry for about 30 minutes before using on the creamsicle bars.
Frequently asked questions
Using heat resistant ingredients is recommended to help prevent mold or spoilage during hot weather shipping. White sugar is least likely to promote mold and vegetable shortening is least likely to promote spoilage.
A microplane zester grater is the ideal tool for removing just the zest (the outermost, colored layer of the orange peel) from an orange.
Related recipes
White chocolate chips are a delicious combination with pumpkin too! For another sweet treat try soft, chewy Pumpkin White Chocolate Chip Cookies.
Root Beer Float Bars are chewy, spiced bars with the creamy addition of white chocolate.
Cranberry White Chocolate Cookies are big bakery cookies with a hint of orange that are crunchy,chewy and incredibly delicious.
Mandarin Orange Mug Cake , made with mandarin slices, is another delicious summer recipe that packs a lot of citrus and white chocolate flavor into a fabulous one minute microwave treat!
Hamantashen are soft, cake-like Purim cookies flavored with orange juice and filled with your choice of sweet fillings like jam or peanut butter cups!
Orange Chocolate Cookies are chewy, orange sugar cookies dipped in dark or milk chocolate. This super quick and easy recipe will remind your of Terry's Chocolate Orange candy!
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Orange Creamsicle Bars
Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup butter flavor vegetable shortening
- 1 ¼ cups granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons orange zest
- 1 ½ tablespoons orange juice
- ½ cup white chocolate chips mini chips are best
- 2-3 tablespoons orange decorating sugar
ICING (optional)
- ½ cup confectioner’s sugar
- 1 tablespoon orange juice
Instructions
Orange bars
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 9” x 9” pan with foil extending over the edges. Spray the foil with non-stick spray.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt.
- Place vegetable shortening in large bowl and microwave about 1 minute until melted.
- Into the bowl of melted shortening add flour mixture, sugar, eggs and yolk, vanilla, and zest plus orange juice or orange extract. Mix with a large spoon until smooth.
- Stir in white chocolate chips.
- Spread the batter evenly into the prepared baking pan then sprinkle with orange sugar (if using). With fingertips, press the sugar gently to make sure it sticks to the batter.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cool completely in the pan on a wire rack.
- When cool, remove the bars from the pan by lifting the overhanging foil.
- Cut into bars.
Icing
- In a small bowl mix together the orange juice and confectioners sugar until smooth. Adjust the consistency, if necessary, by adding more sugar or juice. Drizzle over the bars. Allow the icing to dry completely before wrapping or storing.
- Store at room temperature in an airtight container or freezer weight ziplock bag for up to 10 days. For longer storage, wrap the entire square without cutting into bars to retain moisture and freshness longer.
Notes
- The white chocolate chips tend to sink to the bottom of the bars while baking. Using mini chips (available at Whole Foods) or chopping regular sized chips into smaller pieces will minimize this.
- If fresh orange juice and zest is a concern for extreme hot weather shipping, use 2 teaspoons of orange extract instead.
- Three suggestions for topping/decorating these bars: sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving, add white or orange large crystal decorating sugar before baking, add orange icing over plain or sugar decorated bars.
- To make your own orange sugar, put 3 tablespoons of white, large crystal decorating sugar in a ziplock bag with 1 drop of orange gell food coloring, massage the bag until the sugar is uniformly orange, then let the sugar dry for about 30 minutes before using on the creamsicle bars.
- Double wrap bars individually or in pairs in plastic wrap before stacking in airtight containers or freezer weight ziplock bags.
- For longer shipping times, wrap the entire pan of orange creamsicle bars, without cutting to preserve moisture and keep the bars chewy for longer.
Nutrition
First Published: August 16, 2013. Last Updated: June 22, 2024. Updated for additional information, improved photos, and better reader experience.
Miz Helen
Your Forum sounds so exciting, it is always so much fun to meet other bloggers. I sure love your short term goal, a much needed resource for helping military members and their families! Thanks so much for sharing with us at Full Plate Thursday and have a great weekend!
Miz Helen
The Monday Box
Thank you, Miz Helen! I agree, it is so much fun to meet other bloggers "in real life"! Meeting them can be inspirational and motivational! I truly hope that The Monday Box will be a helpful resource to the friends and family of military members. I am a wee bit passionate about sending love (and thanks and appreciation) in the form of baked goods in care packages! 🙂
Carole @TootSweet4Two
These look delish! Stopping by from SITS Pin-teresting Link-Up and sharing on Pinterest!
The Monday Box
Thanks for stopping by and for pinning, Carole!
Jen V
Thanks so much for participating in last week's Friday Favorites link party! Your post was chosen as one of the features at A Heart Full of Love. http://aheartfulloflove.com/friday-favorites-link-party/ I hope you will come back and party with us again this week!
The Monday Box
Thank you, Jen for hosting and for featuring the Orange Creamsicle Bars!
Frugal Hausfrau
This is one of my fave flavors, ever since I was a kid and used to always pick orange push ups!! These look amazing! Thanks for linking up with us on Throwback Thursday!
Mollie
Mrs. DeYarmond
OMG ! Can I say that this is the most beautiful food picture I saw this month ???
This is awesome ! The colours, the texture ! My mouth is watering ! I've missed your post so much and so glad to be able to have a look at them again !
Lots of love my dear Wendy xxx
themondaybox
Thanks so much, Sarah! It is wonderful to have you back! I hope your travels were great. After the intensity of your exams, a vacation must have been very welcome! I was very happy with these bars. They tasted great and photographed well!
Ashley
So glad you enjoyed your time at the forum! I've yet to attend any type of blogging event, but it's on my list for eventually : ) And these creamsicle bars sound downright awesome. I was completely obsessed with anything creamsicle when I was a kid!
themondaybox
Thanks, Ashley! It was great to be able to start local and small. Now I am dreaming of a BlogHer Food type conference. First I have to put into practice what the STL forum taught me. 🙂 Creamsicles were also my husband's favorites as a child. He loves these bars. 🙂
Joanne
It's always so great to come home from a conference feeling uber inspired!! Good luck achieving all your blog dreams! And for what it's worth, these creamsicle bars are totally care package material, at least in my opinion!!
themondaybox
Thanks, Joanne! It is so easy to get inspired at a conference. Then you come home to day to day responsibilities and there is less time and energy than you need to accomplish everything as quickly as you would like to. One step at a time. 🙂 These bars travel so well and stay fresh for so long, they really are great care package material!
shannon
I think this goes without saying, but i had the best time at the conference with you! I have yet to blog about it (bad shannon!) but i think i've still been wrapping my head around everything i learned that weekend; so much great info and so many great new friends. It was wonderful finally getting to meet you in person, and i'm going to properly invite you to lunch sometime in the very near future (read: once i get the wee one safely off to preschool). 🙂
i'm really excited to see where your direction and focus leads you with this; we talked so much about going forward with our respective blogs, and i'm thrilled to see what comes of it.
these look incredible: is it me or is this one of your best photos? it's gorgeous, truly.
themondaybox
Thanks, Shannon! The conference has my head buzzing with ideas...when or if I will be able to actually implement all of those ideas is another story. I have been thinking hardest about my photos, so I really appreciate your comment!! Looking for my own style that isn't too much and isn't too little and accomplishes the goal of enticement. An ongoing effort for sure.
As much as we talked at the conference, I have all kinds of things I still want to ask you and discuss. I am looking forward to our future coffee/lunch chats. 🙂
I hope the carnival party was fabulous! Also, I hope you and the wee one have a wonderful start to preschool. (If she cries, its to make sure you come back. If you cry, join the crowd, its ok. 🙂
Anne ~ Uni Homemaker
These look yummy Wendy! Orange creamsicle bars? Yes please! 🙂
themondaybox
Thanks, Anne! This creamy citrus flavor is a favorite of so many. I think it brings back childhood memories of creamsicle popsicles. 🙂
Loretta | A Finn In The Kitchen
A few months ago I never thought I'd be ready to see oranges, but I needed some the other day and there weren't any! I guess I'll just have to enjoy the summer produce for just a little longer 🙂
themondaybox
Peaches/nectarines are my favorite summer fruit but we eat citrus year round. I will miss reasonable prices on berries in the winter! (These bars can be made with just orange extract and are just as good as with orange juice and zest!)
Suzie
Orange creamsicles were my favorite when I was young. I can only imagine how good these are! Facebook is a great way to "make your self known" and a great source of information too. There are many, many military groups on there. I have made numerous friends from those groups 🙂
themondaybox
Thanks, Suzie! Creamsicles are one of my husband's favorites too.
I think I am Facebook-phobic. There is so much about it that I just don't get. Pinterest I am a pro at. 🙂 My "kids" need to give me lessons. My 25 yr old daughter lives on Facebook. 🙂 My son is trying to teach me basic Twitter skills. I am definitely technically impaired!
The Soldiers Angels bakers have been very friendly and helpful. None of them seem to follow "desert safe" recipe precautions and haven't had any spoilage issues. Maybe it is a myth made up by Nestle's to get you to bake their desert safe recipes!?!
Suzie
Once you get used to facebook, you too will be hooked. I kept saying to my son, "This is dumb, I don't get it"...lol! Now I'm hooked too. I don't do Twitter. As you know, I don't follow much (some I do) of the desert safe rules either. I just know what region I am sending too and can guesstimate the time to get there. That is how I know what to send. Crazy? Yes, but it does work, I've been doing it for ages. On the other hand, I give YOU a million kudos for working so hard to find desert safe recipes and for sharing them with us all!
themondaybox
Thanks for the facebook encouragement, Suzie! I hope you are right, though I spend too much time on pinterest already so I better not get too hooked on facebook! 🙂 As far as the desert safe stuff goes....I think I have decided that each person has to make their own choice on what rules they will or won't follow. A LOT of people google search for desert safe recipes, so I will try to have some of those as well as regular care package recipes. Variety. 🙂
Mama's Gotta Bake
These look so good, think I'll make them ASAP!
themondaybox
Thanks, Sheryl! We love citrus bars and the texture of these is chewy-crunch wonderful! 🙂 I hope you enjoy them!
noyomoco
These look beautiful! I'm so glad you had fun at the conference - I have yet to go to a blogging conference, but I totally want to!
themondaybox
Thanks, Jennifer! Because the bar looks lemon yellow, I thought some orange sparkle would be a clue to the true orange flavor of these bars! 🙂 I was so lucky that there was a small (affordable) conference minutes from my house! I could get my feet wet without making a major financial or time commitment. It is so much fun talking to other bloggers. A whole room full of people who don't think it's crazy to be excited over sprinkles! 🙂 I highly recommend going when it works for you. (I have seen photos of bloggers with their babies at BlogHer! 🙂 )
Gina left the mall
Lol...I wish someone would send ME a care package of these! They look fantastic! And I'm so glad you went to the forum and had such a terrific experience. I hope the Monday Box just keeps getting bigger. The more "home baked love" we send out into the world, the better!
themondaybox
In all seriousness, Gina, I would be so excited to send you a care package! Email a delivery address and you can be the first member of my shipment testing team! 🙂
The ladies on the forum seemed pleased and enthusiastic about the recipe I shared. 🙂 I have to get better at facebook stuff! Their experience seems to be that all of the desert safe precautions I have been taking, aren't necessary. Hmmm.....better safe than sorry or relax and stop making life more difficult than it has to be? Not sure. Further research and inquiry necessary. Thanks, as always!
Gina left the mall
I would LOVE to be on the shipment testing team! But maybe I can find someone who would be more helpful to you. A few of the military spouses I know love to bake. I think a fellow baker who has shipped things over there would be able to give you more valuable feedback. Plus the benefit of any of their recipe triumphs/fails. If their husbands are in town, you may get 2 testers! 🙂 I'll email you and let you know.
As for the precautions, they would know but...I also know "accommodations vary" (big base vs. remote outpost etc) and so does mail delivery frequency. Again, talking to a fellow baker would be better than talking to me 🙂
But if you want to send me the creamsicle bars or pretty much anything chocolate, my birthday is December 2nd 🙂
themondaybox
THANKS, Gina! Your contacts are always so helpful! I really think a Dec. 2nd care package would be perfect for anything chocolate. We could test out the STL to NYC mail service. 🙂 I need to be prepared for those sending holiday packages within the US also. 😉
Sinead
These look amazing! I bet they taste incredible 🙂
themondaybox
Thanks,Sinead! The chewy center and crunchy crust is my favorite part!