The Ultimate Soft & Gooey Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars: Ever wished you could eat an entire pan of cookies instead of just one? These thick, bakery-style cookie bars are your dream come true. Perfect for anyone who loves:
- Rich, buttery cookie dough
- Melty chocolate in every bite
- No-fuss baking (just press into the pan!)
No more rolling individual cookies – just pour, bake, and enjoy easy cookie perfection.
Adapted from our Nutella-Stuffed Cookie Pie, this easier recipe requires just pantry staples and one bowl. Mix, spread, bake – enjoy perfect cookie bars every time!
While this recipe makes the perfect lazy cookie dessert (just pour and bake!), you can also use the same dough to make soft, gooey chocolate chip cookies. Just note: you’ll likely want to reduce the batch size unless you enjoy spending time rolling out individual cookies!
What you’ll love these Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
- Effortless prep: Just mix and bake, no rolling required
- Time-saving: Ready much faster than individual cookies
- Perfect texture: Deliciously flavorful with a gooey center
- Crowd-pleasing: Ideal for large gatherings and events
- Endlessly customizable: Swap in: M&M’s, Seasonal treats like mini eggs (perfect for Easter!), White chocolate chips, Or your favorite mix-ins
CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE BARS
Grab these ingredients
- Granulated Sugar: Provides straightforward sweetness and helps create those lightly crisp edges we love in cookie bars.
- Brown Sugar: Adds moisture and a deeper, caramel-like flavor while keeping the centers deliciously chewy.
- Eggs: Act as the binding agent that holds everything together while adding richness to the dough.
- Melted Butter: The secret to effortless chewiness – no creaming required! Melting the butter gives these bars their perfect texture.
- All-Purpose Flour: Forms the structural base of the recipe. For best results, spoon and level your flour when measuring.
- Baking Powder: Our rising agent that gives the bars just the right amount of lift without making them cakey.
- Chocolate Chips: The star ingredient that makes these bars irresistible! Semi-sweet chips offer the perfect balance of sweetness and richness, but feel free to customize—swap in milk chocolate for extra creaminess, dark chocolate for depth, or even chopped chocolate bars for rustic, melty pockets.
Yes! The only reason we’re not using it is because it’s very pricey, but feel free to add a splash of vanilla for extra flavor.
Special tools ٠࣪⭑
You’ll need just one mixing bowl to prepare these bars. Start by whisking all the wet ingredients together, then switch to a spatula for mixing in the dry ingredients.
Line your square baking pan with parchment paper for easy removal. Bake until golden brown, then transfer to a cooling rack to set completely before slicing.
How to Make Cookie Bars
These bars come together with minimal effort. Start by mixing the melted butter with both sugars until combined, then whisk in the eggs until you achieve a smooth, liquid-paste consistency.
Don’t stress if the butter seems slow to incorporate at first—just keep whisking! The mixture will eventually come together into the perfect uniform base for your cookie bars.
Now add all the remaining dry ingredients, switching to a spatula to gently fold everything together. Be careful not to overmix—this keeps your cookie bars tender.
The Fun Part: Stir in as many chocolate chips as your heart desires (we won’t judge!). Your perfect cookie dough is now ready to be pressed into the pan for baking.
Pro Tip: Line your pan with parchment paper before baking. This lets you effortlessly lift out the entire cookie bar once cooled—no sticking, no breaking! Just gently pull up the paper edges for perfect, intact bars every time.
Yes, brown butter adds a delicious nutty depth! Note: You’ll need to start with about 40g extra butter, as some evaporates during the browning process.
How to Freeze Cookie Bars? ٠࣪⭑
- Cool & Slice: Let the cookie bars cool completely, then cut into portions. For this recipe, we recommend 9 equal squares.
- Flash Freeze: Arrange squares on a freezer-safe tray and freeze overnight. This prevents sticking.
- Long-Term Storage: Vacuum-seal individual portions or transfer to an airtight freezer container. Always label with the preparation date. (day/month/year) or (month/day/year). Example: 16/April/2025
- Storage Life: Enjoy within 3 months for best quality. Beyond this, they may develop freezer burn.
- Thawing & Serving: Defrost in the refrigerator overnight. For that fresh-baked experience, warm briefly before serving with an ice-cold glass of milk.
Best Tips for Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
- Mix Gently: Once you add the dry ingredients, switch to a spatula and fold just until combined. Overmixing leads to tough bars.
- Watch the Bake Time: Remove them from the oven when the edges are set but the center still looks soft. They’ll firm up as they cool, keeping that perfect gooey texture.
- Cool Before Slicing: Let the pan cool for at least 30 minutes—this helps the bars hold their shape when cut. For ultra-neat slices, chill briefly before cutting.
How to Serve Cookie Bars
- Serve your cookie bar slightly warmed alongside a scoop of premium vanilla bean ice cream. As the warm, gooey chocolate meets the cold, creamy ice cream, you’ll get that perfect melt contrast in every bite.
- Take your presentation to the next level by artfully drizzling warm chocolate ganache (or melted Kinder chocolate) over both the bars and ice cream.
- Sprinkle some flaky sea salt for the perfect final touch.
How to Store Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars ٠࣪⭑
To maintain freshness, arrange cooled bars in an airtight container lined with a paper towel (absorbs moisture); they’ll keep for 4 days refrigerated. For that just-baked texture, reheat in the air fryer (3-4 mins at 160°C), oven (5 mins at 180°C), or microwave (10-sec bursts with a damp towel). Frozen? Add 1-2 minutes—always check for warm centers before serving.
If you try this recipe, please leave us a review on our website! And if you have any questions, feel free to ask in the comments—I’ll try to reply as fast as I can. Happy baking!
Print
Soft and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 30 min
- Total Time: 45
- Yield: 9 1x
- Category: dessert
- Method: oven
- Cuisine: american
Description
These thick, buttery cookie bars are everything you love about classic chocolate chip cookies—but even better! Baked to golden perfection with crispy edges and a gloriously gooey center, they’re studded with melty chocolate chips in every bite.
Ingredients
- 240 grams melted butter
- 70 grams granulated sugar
- 50 grams brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 300 grams all purpose flour
- 200 grams chocolate chips
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
Instructions
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Combine Sugars & Butter: In a large mixing bowl, blend the brown sugar, granulated sugar, and melted butter together. Don’t worry if the mixture looks grainy or separated at this stage – this is completely normal.
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Incorporate Eggs: Add both eggs to the sugar-butter mixture. Use a whisk to beat everything together until the mixture becomes smooth, creamy, and fully unified.
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Add Dry Ingredients: Switch to a spatula and gently fold in the baking powder and all-purpose flour. Be careful not to overmix – stop as soon as no dry flour remains. This gentle approach keeps the bars tender.
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Mix in Chocolate: Now for the best part, stir in your chocolate chips! Add as many as you like (we recommend being generous). The dough will be thick and studded with chocolatey goodness.
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Prepare for Baking: Preheat your oven to 190°C (375°F). Line your baking pan with parchment paper, then transfer the dough into it. Use the spatula to spread it evenly into all corners.
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Bake to Perfection: Bake for exactly 30 minutes. The bars should be golden around the edges while still slightly soft in the center, this gives that perfect gooey texture.
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Cool ProperlyL Let the bars cool in the pan for a little. Then carefully lift them out using the parchment paper and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
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