I’m so excited to be sharing this updated version of my well-loved sugar cookie bars with you today! These sweet dessert bars have thick, buttery sugar cookie bases and a flavorful, just-set frosting. They are so much easier to make than cut-out sugar cookies and they practically melt in your mouth. Unlike many of my cookie bars that are dense and chewy, these sugar cookie bars are a bit more cakey and much softer. They sort of (not entirely, but somewhat) remind me of Lofthouse cookies in taste and texture; so if you like those, you’ll love these! This time around, I decided to swap the buttercream icing I used in my original recipe with a less-sweet cream cheese frosting. Don’t worry though, we’re still adding the sprinkles–they’re not going anywhere! Let’s get to it!
What You Need
Here’s are a few of the key ingredients that make these sugar cookie bars so flavorful, soft and chewy:
Butter. You’ll need softened, unsalted butter for both the bars and the frosting.Cream cheese. The cream cheese keeps the cookie bars incredibly soft, giving them a texture that nearly melts in your mouth (it’s a trick I developed for my bundt cake recipe and petit fours!). It also helps keep the bars from being too sweet, all while not making them taste like cream cheese. I like to use cream cheese in the frosting as well to keep it from being too sweet.Sugar. We’ll use granulated sugar for the bars and powdered sugar for the frosting.Eggs. You’ll need two large eggs plus an extra yolk. The extra yolk helps keep the bars nice and chewy.Flour. All-purpose works best here.Vanilla. Vanilla extract flavors these cookie bars in a delicate, but noticeable way.Cornstarch. This helps to slightly firm up the icing and encourages it to develop a nice buttercream-esque crust on top–it will still be soft underneath though!Sprinkles. These are optional of course, but they do make the tops of the bars look pretty! Feel free to mix up your sprinkles for whatever occasion you’re baking for; these are adorable with Christmas sprinkles!
SAM’S TIP: If you’re not a fan of cream cheese frosting and want to make my original icing, you can omit the cream cheese and use ¾ cup (170g) of softened butter instead. Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Sugar Cookie Bars
SAM’S TIP: If you have trouble spreading the batter into your pan, try wetting your fingers and gently but firmly patting the dough down into the pan. You can also use an offset spatula that’s been lightly greased with cooking spray. Enjoy!
More Recipes You Might Like
Peanut Butter S’mores Cookie BarsOatmeal Cookie BarsEasy Drop Sugar CookiesCookies & Cream Bars
Let’s bake together! I’ll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe and video below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube and Facebook
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