The Best Chocolate Sugar Cookie Bars Recipe

Regular sugar cookies are already super tasty with their iconic vanilla and buttery notes. But have you ever had it with chocolate?! It’s amazing!

If this is your first time, you’re in a for a treat. If you’ve made these before and are just searching for a reliable recipe to follow, you’ve come to the right place.

Since you are here looking for a sugar cookie bar recipe, check out this Patriotic Sugar Cookie Bars Recipe, this Easy Festive Christmas Sugar Cookie Bars Recipe, or this Easy Lemon Sugar Cookie Bars Recipe.

Ingredients for this Chocolate sugar cookie bars recipe

Here are the ingredients you will need to make this easy dessert. Make sure to scroll down to the recipe card at the bottom of the page for the detailed ingredient measurements. 

• Butter: Use unsalted butter so that we can add the salt in separately later. You will also want the butter to be melted, so heat it up in the microwave, then let it cool down so it’s not hot.
• Granulated Sugar and Brown Sugar: sweeten the cookie with the brown sugar adding a deep molasses-y flavor as well as extra moisture to soften our sugar cookie bars.
• Large Egg: helps bind all of the ingredients together.
• Vanilla Extract: is the classic flavor of a good sugar cookie and helps enhance the chocolate flavor.
• All-purpose Flour: combines with the wet ingredients to create the dough.
• Unsweetened Cocoa Powder: is how we will create the flavor for the chocolate sugar cookies.
• Baking Powder: helps the cookie bars rise and prevents them from becoming too dense.
• Salt: balances out the sweetness and enhances the flavor of the chocolate.
• Mini Chocolate Chips: scattered throughout the bars create a fun difference in texture and doubles down on the chocolate flavor.

How to make this chocolate sugar cookie bars recipe

This is how you can turn a chocolate sugar cookie recipe into bars. Make sure to scroll down to the recipe card at the end of this post for the full step-by-step instructions! 

1. Preheat your oven to 350°F and line an 8×8 inch square baking pan with parchment paper, leaving an overhang for easy removal.
2. In a large bowl, mix together the butter and both sugars with a hand mixer or electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla extract, and beat until well combined.
3. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt.
4. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mixing until a dough forms. Make sure to scrape the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula to get every last crumb combined.
5. Press the dough evenly into the prepared pan in an even layer. You can use your hands or a offset spatula to help spread it out. Sprinkle the chocolate chips on top.
6. Bake in the preheated oven until the edges are set and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs.
7. Allow the bars to cool completely to room temperature in the pan before slicing into squares.

Why you need to make this recipe!

• This easy recipe only requires a handful of simple ingredients that you can easily find at the grocery store.
• These simple sugar cookie bars combined with chocolate flavor are the best way to satisfy sweet tooths and chocolate cravings at the same time.
• This chocolate sugar cookie bars recipe is bound to be the new favorite cookie of everyone in your household.

Frequently Asked Questions – FAQ

How do I store leftover bars?

Sugar cookies actually keep really well and you can store them many different ways. The easiest way to store them is to just throw in a Ziploc bag and keep them out at room temp on the kitchen counter. They should last for 3-4 days at least like this.

A better way would be to put them in an airtight container and store them in the fridge. They will last for 7-9 days like that. Or for the best storage option, wrap them in plastic wrap first, then into an airtight container, then into the freezer. They will last for multiple months this way. The purpose of wrapping them first in plastic wrap is to prevent them from getting freezer burn and ruining the flavor.

Can I add a chocolate frosting to this chocolate sugar cookie bars recipe?

Of course, frosted sugar cookie bars are delicious! You should already have the butter and cocoa powder from this recipe, you’ll just need some powdered sugar and milk or heavy cream to make it. And if you want it to be even thicker and deeper in flavor, use cream cheese as well! For different ideas of a frosting recipe, check out this Frostings Page.

Can I try different flavors with this recipe?

Absolutely! Besides adding a frosting of chocolate or different flavors, you could also flavor the cookie dough itself! Here are a few options you could try:

• Switch out the chocolate chips for white chocolate chips or peanut butter chips.
• Add a couple drops of peppermint extract to create chocolate mint sugar cookie bars.
• Sprinkle in some espresso powder to replicate the flavor of a mocha latte in your cookie bars.

Can I double this recipe?

Of course! You can double this recipe and bake it in a 9×13-inch pan instead of8x8 inch pan. Bake it for about the same time or for 2-3 minutes more. To know when it’s done insert a wooden skewer in the center and if it comes out clean, it is ready!

The Best Chocolate Sugar Cookie Bars Recipe

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