35 Ultimate Cookie Bar Recipes You Can’t Resist
Craving a sweet treat that’s easy to share and oh-so-satisfying?
Ditch the individual cookies and cupcakes, and dive into the delightful world of cookie bars and bar desserts with this list of the best Cookie Bar Dessert Recipes!
Need something buttery, fruity, nutty, chocolatey, thick, and melts in the mouth, easy to make, with endless flavor combinations and add-in possibilities? Then these cookie bar desserts are what you need!
A cookie bar, also known as a bar cookie, or bar dessert, is a type of dessert made by spreading a batter or stiff dough into a baking pan, baking it until firm, and then cutting it into individual bars. T
hink of it as a hybrid between a cookie and a sheet cake, offering the best of both worlds.
Cookie bars have a crusty bottom layer like a basic cookie dough or graham cracker crust. However, toppings and mix-in ingredients are then piled high on top similar to toppings you would find in a fruit crumble, rice crispy bar, brownie, or dessert bar.
Cookie bars offer a versatile and delicious dessert option that’s perfect for any occasion. They’re easy to customize, crowd-pleasing, and perfect for satisfying your sweet tooth!
Cookie Bar Dessert Ideas
Imagine sinking your teeth into a warm, melty chocolate chip cookie bar studded with chunks of your favorite dark chocolate or M&Ms. Or perhaps you’re drawn to the tangy zest of lemon bars, their crumbly crust giving way to a burst of citrusy sunshine.
And imagine swirls of peanut butter and Nutella dancing across a buttery shortbread base. Cookie bars are the ultimate crowd-pleaser and treat, blending cookies, filling, frosting, and other mix-in goodies into spectacular no-fuss dessert bars.
This round-up has a diverse collection of Cookie bar dessert ideas to inspire you to turn on your oven and start baking.
Photo: pieladybakes
S’mores recipes are really popular right now and this one is no exception! My mom used to make Magic Cookie Bars when we were kids but she called them Hello Dolly’s.
The ooey gooey combination of chocolate, coconut, and graham crackers topped with a thick layer of sweetened condensed milk – oh wow! You know what I mean!
Get the full recipe from Pie Lady Bakes
Photo: thissillygirlskitchen
Frosted with a light and fluffy sweet buttercream frosting, these Frosted Sugar Cookie Bars are your favorite cookie in bar form. Easy, beautiful, and irresistible.
Classic sugar cookies in a handheld bar? Sign me up, please! So much easier than making cookie after cookie, these Frosted Sugar Cookie Bars will be your new favorite treat.
Get the full recipe from This Silly Girl’s Kitchen
Photo: missinthekitchen
Salted Caramel Cookie Bars with Chocolate Chips and Pecans are an easy dessert for any day of the week.
The perfect loaded cookie bar with crunchy edges and chewy middles. The caramel bits keep them chewy in the middle.
Get the full recipe from Miss In The Kitchen
Photo: pieladybakes
This Nanaimo Bars Recipe is the perfect no bake chocolate dessert that looks gorgeous, tastes amazing and you can make ahead of time to keep in the fridge or freeze!
Get the full recipe from Pie Lady Bakes
Photo: diycandy
These cinnamon cookie bars use Oreos and are NO bake! This dessert is so rich and good – your family will ask you to make them again.
These dessert bars don’t take long to make and your family is going to beg you to make them again – just a warning!
Get the full recipe from DIY Candy
- S’MORES BARS
Photo: seasonalcravings
S’mores Bars are always a win and these sweet ones will not disappoint. Made with chocolate graham crackers, chocolate chunks, and mini marshmallows.
Looking for a yummy chocolate treat to take to an event or just eat on a Wednesday afternoon? I got you covered with these S’mores Bars made with chocolate graham crackers, chocolate chunks, and mini marshmallows.
Get the full recipe from Seasonal Cravings
Photo: spendwithpennies
Make magic in the kitchen with this famous magic cookie bar recipe! These 7 layers bars are a cinch to make and they’re the perfect make-ahead treat!
Make a batch and store them in the freezer, they thaw in just a few minutes making them perfect for treats and lunches.
Get the full recipe from Spend With pennies
Photo: vintagekitchennotes
Sweet and full of chocolate chips, these oatmeal bars are like a giant chewy oat cookie baked in a pan.
This recipe is one-bowl easy and great for those days when you don’t feel like making individual cookies. They’re ready in 45 minutes and can be frozen.
Get the full recipe from Vintage Kitchen Notes
Photo: cookingwithcarlee
Funfetti sugar cookie bars are soft, delicious, and covered in sprinkle-filled buttercream. They are perfect for birthdays, parties, and more.
Plus when you bake cookies as bars, it makes everything so quick and easy with no chilling of the dough or rotating trays of cookies through the oven.
Get the full recipe from Cooking With Carlee
Photo: themondaybox
Butterscotch Peanut Bars are a sweet, chewy cookie bar that almost qualifies as candy. The buttery cookie base is crowned with salted peanuts coated in butterscotch.
These shiny bars are a delicious treat for party platters and cookie exchanges, as well as for filling care packages with tempting snacks.
Get the full recipe from The Monday Box
Photo: wholeheartedeats
These have all the ooey-gooey chewiness of a typical chocolate chip cookie but are made with healthier gluten-free flours (no weird gums in sight), lower glycemic sugar, and a nice bit of miso for some salty umami.
Get the full recipe from Wholehearted Eats
Photo: dinneratthezoo
These cookie dough bars are edible cookie dough filled with chocolate chips and M&M’s, then topped with more chocolate and candy.
A fun and unexpected dessert that takes just minutes to put together! These cookie dough bars are a handheld version of the classic treat.
Get the full recipe from Dinner At The Zoo
Photo: funcookierecipes
You have to make these super easy frosted sugar cookie bars! They are so delicious, and the recipe is foolproof.
Soft and chewy sugar cookie bars are spread with the perfect amount of buttercream frosting and topped with sprinkles to make them a treat fit for any celebration!
Get the full recipe from Fun Cookie Recipes
Photo: uglyducklingbakery
Elevate your Lemon Bars with Graham Cracker Crust instead of the traditional shortbread.
Just mix graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and butter to make a bottom crust, top the graham cracker cookie crust with lemon curd, and bake until firm.
Get the full recipe from Ugly Duckling Bakery
Photo: semihomemadekitchen
Indulge in the best of both cookie and cheesecake worlds with these Peanut Butter Cookie Cheesecake Bars!
Made effortlessly with refrigerated peanut butter cookie dough, they’re generously layered with a velvety homemade cheesecake filling and topped off with the delightful crunch of Reese’s Pieces for a dessert that’s pure delight.
Get the full recipe from Semi Homemade Kitchen
Photo: turningclockback
These easy sugar cookie bars are delicious and easy to make for Easter, Spring, or just because you want homemade cookies!
Thick, chewy, and topped with homemade frosting and sprinkles! Fresh blackberries give the vanilla frosting a naturally purple hue.
Get the full recipe from Turning Clock Back
Photo: thetoastykitchen
Chocolate chip cookie bars are easy to make from scratch in your own home. This recipe requires no chilling time and no mixer –
They’re ready in less than an hour! These bars turn out chewy and soft, and are filled with melty chocolate chips.
Get the full recipe from The Toasty Kitchen
Photo: willcookforsmiles
Sugar cookie bars are like the little black dress, classic, elegant, and never go out of style.
These frosted cookie bars are also dressed in some fabulous flavors of brown butter and cinnamon. A beautiful holiday treat!
Get the full recipe from Will Cook For Smiles
Photo: theglutenfreeaustrian
If you’re a fan of Gluten Free Monster Cookies but also crave the convenience and simplicity of Gluten Free Monster Cookie Bars, you’re in for a real treat.
Packed with gluten-free oats, an abundance of creamy peanut butter, and lots of chocolate and M&M’s, it is scary how good they are!
Get the full recipe from The Gluten Free Austrian
Photo: lifeloveandgoodfood
Who doesn’t love a good cookie bar? I know I do, especially when they come together so easily!
Rich and buttery Blueberry White Chocolate Cookie Bars are studded with fresh blueberries and are melt-in-your-mouth delicious.
Get the full recipe from Life Love And Good Food
Photo: cambreabakes
Monster cookie bars- soft and chewy peanut butter oatmeal cookie bars loaded with colorful M&Ms and chocolate chips!
Inspired by monster cookies, these quick and easy bakery-style dessert bars are made in one bowl in less than 1 hour.
Get the full recipe from Cambrea Bakes
Photo: ifyougiveablondeakitchen
Do you love peanut butter and trying easy recipes? Then these dessert bars have your name written all over them! Peanut butter cookie bars are super easy to make and have the best texture.
They are perfectly soft and chewy. You can add chocolate chips or M&M’s for some extra fun too!
Get the full recipe from If You Give A Blonde A Kitchen
Photo: thecookinchicks
Craving something sweet? Soft, chewy, and packed with gooey chocolate, these Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars are an easy, delicious treat.
They can be ready for the oven in no time, and if you are serving a lot of people, cut the bars into smaller pieces and it provides plenty for all!
Get the full recipe from The Cookin Chicks
Photo: cupofflour.
Get ready for your home to smell like Christmas with these chewy gingerbread cookie bars with cream cheese frosting.
These gingerbread bars are easy to make with simple steps, so you can spend less time baking and more time indulging!
Get the full recipe from Cup Of Flour.
Photo: theshortordercook
Nutter Butter bars are an amazing cookie for any peanut butter and jelly lover. This easy recipe is the ultimate PB&J cookie bar with a Nutter Butter base, a sweet strawberry preserves layer, and a crumbled topping.
These cookies with the jelly in the middle are pretty, yummy, and sure to be a kid’s favorite (adults too!)
Get the full recipe from The Short Order Cook
Photo: recipessimple
These Brookie Bars are half chocolate chip cookie, half fudge brownie, and 100% delicious! Rich, dense, chewy, and chocolatey, these brownie cookies do have it all!
Featuring tons of chocolate chips and other common pantry staples, these dessert bars can be made from start to finish in just under an hour.
Get the full recipe from Recipes Simple
Photo: simplystacie
Magic Cookie Bars are layers of sweetness! This decadent treat is filled with butterscotch, chocolate, toffee, coconut and nuts.
This recipe has been floating around homes for a long time. You may already know it as 7 Layer Magic Bars. It can be easily tweaked to suit your tastes.
Get the full recipe from Simply Stacie
Photo: crinkledcookbook
The baking time is about the same, but when you take it out of the oven, the presentation is so much more fun in a cast iron skillet.
It’s a special treat to dish up a chocolate chip bar cookie from a warm skillet. Chewy, chocolatey and delicious!
Get the full recipe from Crinkled Cookbook
Photo: organicallyaddison
These homemade 7-layer bars are a classic dessert! They are loaded with many different flavors and textures.
They are loved for their simplicity, versatility, and delicious flavor. These magic cookie dessert bars feature a buttery graham cracker crust, chocolaty and crunchy filling, and creamy topping!
Get the full recipe from Organically Addison
Photo: 100daysofrealfood
These almond flour blondies have chewy golden edges and a soft gooey center! They taste like classic chocolate chip cookies in bar form.
These blondies take just 25 minutes in total. They are quick and easy to make for any occasion. These gluten-free blondies are a family favorite!
Get the full recipe from 100 Days Of Real Food
Photo: carrotsandcookies
Made with less sugar, less butter, and fewer chocolate chips than traditional recipes. This means fewer grams of added sugar and less saturated fat.
This quick and easy, delicious chocolate chip cookie bar recipe is made with whole wheat flour, less butter, and less sugar. Your kids will never know!
Get the full recipe from Carrots And Cookies
Photo: tastygalaxy
These easy and extra delicious Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars take just a few minutes of actual work to make, and they come out AMAZING!
Here is the easiest recipe for making cookie bars that will taste just like they are from the best bakery in town!
Get the full recipe from Tasty Galaxy
Photo: whiskingwolf
Get ready to elevate your snack game with these irresistible Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars.
Combining a chewy oat base, a creamy peanut butter middle, and a silky chocolate topping, these three-layer cookie bars are a tasty fusion of flavors and textures.
Get the full recipe from Whisking Wolf
Photo: foodbanjo
Funfetti ooey gooey bars are filled with sprinkles and are so easy to make! These cookie bars turn out ooey gooey and delicious.
They are made with sprinkles and resemble Funfetti cake but in a cookie bar. These Funfetti cake mix bars are just so gooey and sweet and delicious.
Get the full recipe from Food Banjo
Photo: onmykidsplate
Soft and chewy chocolate chip cookie bars are gooey, buttery and delicious! This large-batch cookie recipe is packed full of colorful chocolate candies and sweet chocolate chips.
Make these delicious cookie bars for parties, picnics, potlucks, BBQs, or any time you need a colorful dessert to bring to feed a crowd!
Get the full recipe from On My Kids Plate
Cookie Bar Desserts FAQ
What is the difference between a cookie and a cookie bar?
Cookie bars have the ease of cookies with the decadence of a cake or dessert bar.
Cookie bars, on the other hand, are all about togetherness. Spread in a pan and cut into squares, they offer a unified experience, often with layers and swirls of flavor throughout.
Imagine a blondie bar with pockets of Nutella or a lemon bar with a buttery shortbread base and tangy citrus filling. Cookie bars are easier and less time-consuming to make than cookies.
What are good mix-in ingredients for cookie bars?
Great mix-in ingredients include chocolate and butterscotch chips, M&Ms, sprinkles, coconut, nuts, peanut butter, caramel, marshmallows, brownie bites, candy pieces, granola, dried fruit, and more!
Are these cookie bar recipes suitable for beginners?
Absolutely! I’ve included a mix of recipes suitable for all skill levels. Whether you’re a beginner baker or a pro, you’ll find options that are easy to follow and yield delicious results.
What are some classic cookie bar ideas?
This round-up has some classic cookie bar recipes for you to try out. From Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars to Brownies, Blondies, Peanut butter Oatmeal Bars
With endless incredible flavors, textures, and ingredients to play with, it’s no wonder cookie bars can become your new obsession so don’t forget to get creative with them and add some personality.
Final Thoughts
Our Cookie Bar Recipes are an easy and fun way for you to add some sweet treats to your weekly meal planning. Quick to make, with fun mix-ins, even the kids can get in on the action.
Want more easy to make recipes like these? Check out our Easy Desserts for Potlucks!
We all love EASY right?
These recipes will put a smile on everyone's faces!
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Judy Kahansky
Judy Kahansky is an experienced writer and baker, creating delicious desserts (including pie!) for over 40 years. She loves to take classic and vintage recipes and update them to fit the busy lives of her readers. When not baking, Judy and her husband Mark are passionate golfers, travelers and dog lovers, spending as much time as they can with their sweet pup Millie.
