Sugar Cookie Bars

We love making sugar cookie recipe for the holidays, such as Halloween and Valentine’s Day. There is something about this soft and chewy cookie that makes the holidays extra special. But these Sugar Cookie Bars are easier to make and we still get the flavors, texture of a sugar cookie.

If you are a Sugar Cookie lover like my family is, make these bars or this Soft Sugar Cookie Recipe. Sugar cookies make the perfect sweet treat.

Why This Recipe Works

We love making these sugar cookie bars for many reasons. They are made with easy ingredients. Are simple to make and I can change the frosting and sprinkles to what holiday I am celebrating.

They are also extremely delicious so it makes it easy to make them.

Ingredients

• Unsalted Butter – Make sure butter softened
• All Purpose Flour – Try it with Gluten Free Flour or Whole Wheat Flour
• Milk – We used whole mil
• Food Coloring – Use color of your choice
• Sprinkles – Sprinkles of your choice to celebrate the holidays

Scroll to the bottom for the full recipe and ingredients in the recipe card.

How to Make Sugar Cookie Bars

• Step 1 – Prepare the Oven and Pan – Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and lightly grease a 9X13 baking pan with cooking spray. 

Step 2 – Mix together Wet Ingredients – In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until well combined and light and fluffy.  Then add in the eggs and the vanilla extract.  Mix for 1-2 minutes until they are incorporated. 

Step 3 – Add in Dry Ingredients – Then hand stir in the flour, baking powder or baking soda and salt.  Stir until just combined, being careful not to over mix.  

Step 4 – Spread into Pan – Then spread the dough into the prepared baking pan and press the dough down slightly.  Bake for 10-13 minutes.  Be careful not to over bake. Baking the bars until they are golden brown.

Step 5 – Combine Frosting Ingredients – Cream together the butter and powdered sugar until combined and smooth. 

Step 6 – Add In Milk and Vanilla – Add in the milk and vanilla extract and mix for 1-2 minutes until the frosting is light and fluffy.  Then dye the frosting with food color (optional). 

Step 7 – Spread onto Cookie Bar – Spread the frosting on top of the cooled cookie bar and top with the sprinkles (optional). Then the bars are ready to slice, serve and enjoy! 

How to Make Frosting

Making the frosting recipe for this sugar cookie bars is easy to do. We like to spread a thick on the bars to make sure each bite has these tasty frosting in it.

• Combine the butter and sugar. Cream together the butter and powdered sugar until combined and smooth.  Then add in the milk and vanilla extract and mix for 1-2 minutes until the frosting is light and fluffy. 
• Add the food coloring. This is optional. If you plan to dye the frosting, go ahead and add the food color now. You can use different colors based on the holiday you are celebrating.
• Decorate the cookies. Spread the frosting on top of the cooled cookie bar and top with the sprinkles if doing so. Use different color sprinkles for the holiday or occasion you are celebrating.

Recipe Tips

• Stand Mixer –  It is much easier to mix the sugar cookie dough using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. While you can use a electric mixer, I prefer to use my stand mixer for this recipe.
• Softened Butter – Allow the butter to sit at room temperature and soften before using. It will be easier to mix and result in a smoother consistency.
• Sheet Pan –  You can make thinner bars by using a sheet pan instead of a baking dish. Just keep in mind to adjust the cooking time for these thinner bars. They will not take as long to cook.
• Allow to cool – The bars should be completely cool before adding the frosting. Do not rush this step or the bars will not look as pretty.

How to Decorate Sugar Cookie Bars

Decorating these sugar cookie bars are so fun to do. The options are endless and can be customized to what you are celebrating or what you have on hand.

• Change the Frosting – We like a buttercream frosting, but you can easily use a premade frosting or don’t frost it at all. Some of my kids are not big frosting fans.
• Change the Color – We made pink frosting for this recipe, but you easily do a white frosting and put colorful sprinkles on it. Do a red frosting with white sprinkles. So many different ways to decorate.
• Add Sprinkles – We love adding sprinkles to these bars. But you can easily omit them or change them to different types of sprinkles. Feel free to decorate how you prefer.
• Pipe Frosting – To get real creative, you can even pipe a message on the cookie bars.
• Cookie Cake – Bake this in a round pizza pan instead of a baking dish. It will turn out like a cookie cake. You can use a piping bag to decorate the cake with frosting.