Sugar Cookie Bars {Soft-Baked} - Celebrating Sweets

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Published: Jun 21, 2021 · Modified: Apr 5, 2022 by · 61 Comments

These Sugar Cookie Bars are soft and tender and topped with frosting and sprinkles. This is the easiest way to make sugar cookies. Perfect for any holiday or occasion, and great for feeding a crowd.

Is there anything better than a sugar cookie? Yes, there is. It’s a SUGAR COOKIE BAR topped with buttercream frosting and lots of sprinkles. These bars are delicious and easy; approximately one billion times easier than rolling out cookie dough and making a big ol’ mess on your countertop.

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Recipe overview

Sugar cookie dough: This easy dough comes together in minutes. The addition of cream cheese and powdered sugar ensures that the bars bake up soft and tender. The dough is flavored with a combination of vanilla extract and almond extract. 

Buttercream frosting: I use a variation of my Sugar Cookie Frosting and Buttercream Frosting as the topping for these bars. It’s a combination of butter, powdered sugar, milk, vanilla, and almond extract.  It’s the most delicious topping for sugar cookies!

Why you’ll love this recipe

  • Ease: No need to roll out or scoop individual sugar cookies. Since the dough is pressed into a pan it comes together quickly and easily. 
  • Flavor: For this recipe I took flavor inspiration from my Easy Sugar Cookies and my Sugar Cookie Frosting. The cookie dough and frosting are both flavored with a combination of vanilla and almond extract. The touch of almond extract makes them taste like they came from a bakery.
  • No chill time: Once the cookie dough is prepared it is baked right away.
  • Feed a crowd: Whip up a pan of these cookie bars to serve for parties, BBQ’s, holidays, and more! You can get anywhere from 12-18 bars from this recipe.
  • Versatility: Change around the frosting color and sprinkles to match the theme or holiday you’re celebrating. Red and green for Christmas, pink and red for Valentine’s Day, red, white, and blue for the 4th. Have fun with it!

Recipe tips

  • My number one tip for this recipe (and all my cookie recipes, for that matter) is: Do NOT overbake. Underbake them just slightly so that they’re nice and soft.
  • Butter and cream cheese should be softened to cool room temperature to ensure that they blend smoothly.
  • Moisten your fingertips with a little water to make it easier to press the sticky dough into the pan.

    • Serving and storage

    Store tightly covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Bring to room temperature before serving.

    Leftover bars can be frozen for up to 2 months. Note they might be on the softer side once thawed.

    Recipe

    Two sugar cookie bars topped with pink frosting and sprinkles stacked on top of each other.

    Sugar Cookie Bars

    These Sugar Cookie Bars are soft and tender and topped with frosting and sprinkles.

    4.68 from 25 votes

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    Course: Dessert

    Cuisine: Dessert

    Prep Time: 20 minutes

    Cook Time: 22 minutes

    Total Time: 42 minutes

    Servings: 18

    Calories: 342kcal

    Author: Allison – Celebrating Sweets

    Ingredients

    For the bars:

    For the frosting:

    Instructions

    Bars:

    • Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 9×13 baking pan with foil and lightly grease or spray it.

    • Using a hand mixer or stand mixer with the paddle attachment beat butter and cream cheese until smooth and creamy. Add granulated sugar and powdered sugar and beat until smooth and creamy. Beat in egg and extracts, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.

    • In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt. With your mixer on low, add flour to the butter mixture, mixing until just combined.

    • Scoop the dough into the prepared pan and use your fingers to evenly press it into the pan. The dough will be thick and sticky, I recommend that you lightly moisten your fingertips with water to help press the dough into the pan.

    • Bake for 22-25 minutes, until the top appears dry and the edges are just starting to turn light brown. Make sure not to over bake. Place the pan on a wire rack and cool completely before frosting them.

    Frosting:

    • Using a hand mixer or stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat butter until smooth. Add half the powdered sugar, beating until combined. Beat in remaining powdered sugar followed by milk, extracts, and food coloring (if using). Turn the speed to high and beat for a full minute, until fluffy. If necessary, you can adjust the consistency by adding more powdered sugar to thicken or more milk to thin. Use an offset spatula or butter knife to spread the frosting over the cooled bars. Top with sprinkles and slice into squares.

    Notes

    Store tightly covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Bring to room temperature before serving. Leftover bars can be frozen for up to 2 months. Note they might be on the softer side once thawed.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 342kcal | Carbohydrates: 44g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 57mg | Sodium: 59mg | Potassium: 49mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 30g | Vitamin A: 572IU | Calcium: 21mg | Iron: 1mg

    Nutritional Information is an estimate based on third-party calculations and may vary based on products used and serving sizes.

    Tried this recipe?Leave a comment and rating below!

    Recipe updated June 2021.

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