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This is the best chocolate chip cookie bars recipe. They are soft and gooey in the center, bursting with chocolate and very easy to make. Definitely a family favorite!
The Best Chocolate Chip Bars
The first time I made this easy recipe for chocolate chip cookie bars, they were gone in a day. This is one time I can’t blame it on the kids. This easy dessert is that good! I tweaked a basic cookie bar recipe until I thought it would suit our tastes. And over 10 years later, these chewy cookie bars are still a family favorite! You can make the dough in one bowl, bake it in a 9×13 pan, and enjoy homemade cookies from scratch in about 30 minutes.
The wonderful thing about making cookies in bar form is they are so much faster to make than regular individual cookies. And with this one bowl recipe, no need to use separate bowls for dry ingredients and wet ingredients. As much as we love making our favorite chocolate chip cookies, bar cookies are way easier.
The cookie bars are warm and soft with a gooey chocolate center. You may think it can’t get any better, but the next day, they are even more amazing–trust me. Unlike regular chocolate chip cookies, the bar cookies stay very soft and chewy in the inside.
Table of Contents
Ingredient Notes
You need a few simple ingredients for this chocolate chip cookie bar recipe. Full amounts and instructions are in the printable recipe card below.
- Butter — I use salted butter, but unsalted butter is fine.
- Brown sugar — either dark brown sugar or light brown sugar. This helps keep the bars soft and sweet.
- White sugar — granulated sugar for added sweetness
- Cinnamon — for added flavor
- Vanilla extract — adds flavor
- Eggs — binds the dough
- All purpose flour — the base of the bars
- Baking powder — to help the cookies rise
- Sea salt
- Semi sweet chocolate chips — You can sub your favorite flavor here
How to Make Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
Start out by melting one half cup of butter in a large mixing bowl. The other nice thing about this wonderful recipe is you can make the entire batch in one large microwavable bowl — my kind of cooking! Then add a combination of light brown sugar and granulated sugar to the melted butter, and stir until it looks like this.
Next, add two eggs, one at a time, and beat well after you add each egg. Add some vanilla extract, and then add 2 cups of white flour, salt and two teaspoons of baking powder. The dough is stiff, but this is normal. At this point I added 2 teaspoons of cinnamon–I just love this stuff! I used slightly more than one cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips and stirred them into the cookie dough.
It looks like a lot of chocolate chips, but trust me, it’s not. Can you ever really have too many chocolate chips? Transfer dough to a 9×13 metal baking pan lined with parchment paper. The dough is very thick, so you can use a spatula to press the dough into the pan. and pop it into the oven. If you don’t have a metal pan, grease a glass baking pan.
The bars take 20 to 25 minutes to bake. They will be soft, so use a toothpick to test if they are done. The center is supposed to be nice and gooey. Allow to cool, then slice into squares or rectangles, and enjoy!
How to Tell When Bar Cookies are Done
Cookie bars are done when they are golden brown and firm around the edges and the middle is firm and not wet. When you insert a toothpick in the center it will come out with melted chocolate but it shouldn’t be wet.
Storage Tips
To keep them soft, store the bars in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-4 days. You can put a slice of sandwich bread in there, and it will help absorb moisture to keep the bars soft longer. Trust me! For longer storage, wrap the bars in freezer safe paper in a zip top storage bag and freeze for up to 3 months. They freeze and thaw very well.
Expert Tips
Use a metal pan for best results, and line with parchment paper or foil for easy removal and slicing. If using a glass pan, reduce the oven temperature to 325 as the sides of a glass pan tend to cook faster than the center, so the lower temperature works better.
All ovens are different. Bake until the edges are firm, golden brown and the center is set. Allow to cool down before slicing. Be careful not to over bake.
Add seasonal sprinkles, flaky sea salt or colorful candy to the top for different holidays.
Can you turn any cookie recipe into a bar cookie?
You can generally convert most drop cookie recipes into cookie bar recipes. You just have to increase the baking time to 25 – 30 minutes.
More Delicious Cookie Bar Recipes
Try my oatmeal bars or these frosted cookie bars or double chocolate bars or these delicious peanut butter oatmeal bars next. I also have an easy cake mix bar recipe!
Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
Ingredients
- ½ cup butter
- 1 ½ cups brown sugar
- ½ cup white sugar
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350℉
- Add the butter to a large mixing bowl, and melt in microwave.
- Add the brown sugar and white sugar, and mix until well combined.
- Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each egg is added. Mix in the cinnamon and vanilla.,
- Gradually add flour, one cup at a time, and mix well. Add sea salt and baking powder, and mix until well combined
- Stir in chocolate chips, and press mixture evenly into a parchment paper-lined 9 X 13 metal baking pan. Top with additional chocolate chips, if desired
- Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until cookie bars are light golden brown, center is set and toothpick inserted into center is fairly clean. Bars will be slightly soft, so don't overbake
- remove from oven, allow to cool for 5 minutes, then lift parchment paper up, and cool completely on counter or metal rack
- Slice into squares, and store in an airtight container
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Made this simple recipe today as it was pretty cold outside. Tons of flavor and easy as it is just one big cookie! Kids loved them right out of the oven too.
So happy to hear this, Laurie! Thanks!
Super easy and love how soft they are! Huge hit with the whole family!
I was in the mood to bake today but wanted to try something I’ve never made before, and I’m so glad I found this recipe! These bars are so chewy, chocolaty and sweet, and they make the house smell sooo delicious. I also love how easy they are! I’m certainly adding these to my go to baking recipes!!
SO happy you liked the cookie bars, Shaila. Thank you!
Boy are these great. The kids have made them twice now. Easy to make too!
Thanks, Jim. I’m so glad they liked the cookie bars!
I make these repeatedly and they always get rave reviews. Thank you!
These are sooooo good! I love adding holiday M&Ms to these to make them festive!
We do that for Christmas, too. Thanks, Kora!
We just moved and I haven’t unpacked my sheet pans. My husband has been asking when I’m going to make him some chocolate chip cookies. Out of desperation I went looking for a cookie bar recipe and came across yours.. He took one look and turned his nose up. ‘Why did you make bar cookies? They always turn out like bricks ‘ Well, I h watched him reluctantly eat one, then another, that was last night. Tonight the lot is 3/4 gone. He told me to keep the recipe. ‘They’re soft and gooey on the inside, just how I like cookies!” He is THE HARDEST PERSON TO PLEASE
Thank you, it’s a wonderful recipe, didn’t change a thing.
That is just awesome, Sharon! Thank you so much for writing in — enjoy your new home! 🙂
What size metal pan do you bake these in?
I use a 9 X 13 pan. I just updated the directions. 🙂
Thank you. EXCELLENT recipe.
So glad you liked the cookie bars! 🙂