Christmas Sugar Cookie Bars – Soft and Chewy Recipe
Not in the mood to make cut-out cookies? Try making soft Christmas sugar cookies in bar form with this perfect cookie bar recipe!
Soft sugar cookies are a staple at every Christmas party! For this recipe, I took everything that I love about the best Christmas cookie recipes and turned them into Christmas Sugar Cookie Bars!
The sugar cookie dough is made extra soft with the addition of cream cheese, and it’s flavored with a combination of vanilla and almond extract!
For the frosting, I whipped up a simple buttercream frosting made with butter, cream cheese and powdered sugar.
You can make the icing ahead of time and store in the refrigerator until you need it! However, you will need to allow the baked cookie bars to cool completely before adding the frosting.
The best part of these yummy cookie bars? No cookie cutters, no rolling pin, and no chill time!
These Christmas Cookie Bars are perfectly soft and festive for the season, tasting like classic sugar cookies without all of the work.
Additions:
Have fun with this recipe! You can decorate these Christmas bars however you like, but here are a few suggestions:
- Add chocolate chips or M&M’s to the cookie dough.
- Top with crushed candy canes.
Serving Suggestions:
These Christmas Cookie Bars will be the star of your cookie exchange!
Serve them alongside some Coconut Oil Fudge, No Bake Buckeye Bars, Peppermint Bark, Christmas Cracker Candy, Food for the Gods (butterscotch bars), my easy Chocolate Chip cookies, Polish Christmas Cookies or Cherry Thumbprint Cookies!
Storing Leftover Cookie Bars:
Store in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Because of the buttercream frosting, you will need to store leftover bars in the fridge.
Christmas Sugar Cookie Bars - Soft and Chewy Recipe
Not in the mood to make cut-out cookies? Try making soft Christmas sugar cookies in bar form with this perfect cookie bar recipe!
Ingredients
For the sugar cookie dough:
- ½ cup unsalted butter (softened to room temperature)
- 4 ounces cream cheese (softened to room temperature)
- 1 cup white sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- 2 eggs
- 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
For the frosting:
- ½ cup unsalted butter (softened to room temperature)
- 2 ounces cream cheese (softened)
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2-3 cups powdered sugar
For topping:
- Holiday sprinkles or crushed peppermint
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Line a 9x13'' baking pan with parchment paper or spray pan with cooking spray.
- Make the cookie dough batter. In a large bowl, beat together the wet ingredients: butter, cream cheese and sugar until light and fluffy. Add in the vanilla extract, almond extract and eggs and mix again using a hand mixer.
- In a medium sized bowl mix together dry ingredients: the flour, cornstarch, baking powder and salt.
- Add the flour mixture ½ cup at a time to the cream cheese mixture, carefully beating it.
- Spoon the batter into the prepared baking dish. Use a greased spatula to smooth the dough flat.
- Bake and cool: Place in the oven and bake for 22-24 minutes until a toothpick comes clean in the middle of the pan, and the top of the bars begin to turn a light golden brown. Cool the bars completely before frosting.
- Make the frosting: Using a hand mixer or stand mixer, beat the butter until fluffy. Add the cream cheese, and bear to incorporate. Add in salt and vanilla extract, stir to combine. Finally, add the powdered sugar ½ a cup at a time while mixing on low. Continue to beat for several minutes until the frosting is nice and fluffy.
- Once the bars are fully cooled, frost the bars and sprinkle with sprinkles. Slice and serve!
Notes
If you need to quickly soften your butter and cream cheese, keep each of them in wrapper and place in a dish of warm water until softened, but not melted.
Nutrition Information
Yield 12 Serving Size 1Amount Per Serving Calories 568Total Fat 21gSaturated Fat 13gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 7gCholesterol 86mgSodium 189mgCarbohydrates 91gFiber 1gSugar 71gProtein 5g
The nutrition for this recipe is calculated by an app and may be incorrect.
