Frosted Sugar Cookie Bars
It’s amazing how much I love a recipe that makes things quick and easy. Even though plenty of people probably make sugar cookies regularly, not minding the steps involved, it’s a treat I often don’t have the patience for. Now that being said, it’s on my “baking bucket list” to learn how to make the beautiful royal-iced cookies that some bloggers are so amazing at, but I’m taking baby steps OK! In the meantime, I’m more than happy to satisfy my sugar-cookie-sweet-tooth with the simplest sugar cookie bars in the planet.
Instead of chilling and rolling and cutting the dough- you simply press it into a pan and bake! A simple buttercream is lathered over and there you have it- a perfect palate for any seasonal color of icing and sprinkles! I found these bars soft and buttery, with a not-too-sweet cookie base made up for with a sugary frosting. After sitting out for a few minutes the frosting firms up which makes these easy as pie to transport and share. (I brought them to my agent’s office- note- sugar makes people happy!)
Frosted Sugar Cookie Bars
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 egg white
- 1 1/2 Tbsp sour cream, I just do 1 heaping Tbsp
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 recipe vanilla frosting, recipe follows
- Vanilla Frosting
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 2-3 Tbsp half and half
- 1 tsp vanilla
- Pinch of salt
- Several drop food coloring, optional
- Sprinkles, optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Butter a quarter sheet pan OR a 13" x 9" baking dish, set aside.
- In a mixing bowl combine flour, baking powder and salt, set aside.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, whip together butter and sugar until pale and fluffy about 2-3minutes. Mix in egg and egg white. Add sour cream and vanilla and mix until blended. (mixture may be a little lumpy at this point.)
- With the mixer running on low, slowly add dry mixture and stir until just combined. Scoop dough into prepared pan, and use an off-set spatula to gently spread it to the edges. (Use your hands to gently press if needed.)
- Bake 15-18 minutes or until the middle is slightly firm and the edges are lightly golden.
- Cool completely, then frost and cut into squares.
Vanilla Frosting:
- In a mixing bowl, with an electric mixer, whip together butter and powdered sugar until thick. (Mixture will seem dry.) Add half and half a little at a time until fluffy. Mix in vanilla and salt. Add in food optional food coloring and mix until well blended.
Nutrition Information:
Serving Size: 24 gramsAmount Per Serving: Unsaturated Fat: 0g
Recipe adapted slightly from: Cooking Classy
YUM! Pretty sure I’d eat the whole batch of these in one sitting.
Adorable, Audra! I love frosted sugar cookies!
These would be my most favorite ever!! I just adore sprinkles, vanilla, and frosting hehe ;-)
Are Bake at 350’s cookies not the most amazing things ever? I attempted sugar cookies with royal icing for my sister’s graduation- they turned out pretty well, but having the right cookie-frosting tools is totally necessary. Annie’s Eats has a good beginner recipe. Anyway— I love these bars! Super simple and adorable! My little guys will love ’em in their lunch boxes!!
Yes! Bake at 350, and Sugarbelle make it seem so easy don’t they? I’d really like to try this year…I’m building up courage!!
I’m actually terrible at any kind of rollout cookies, so these are perfect!
Yay, your site is fixed!! Saw your FB post last night – am glad it’s all resolved so quickly :)
These bars are such a great alternative to traditional sugar cookies. Sometimes you just want quick and easy!
Thanks! That was a very stressful 12 hours for me. :)
I have had a recipe like this Pinned FOREVER and I keep saying “next time” mostly because I assumed the frosting would make transport difficult. You have convinced me otherwise!
I keep meaning to try sugar cookie bars … they are so freakin’ cute and they look nice and easy! Love these with their pink frosting and sprinkles. Perfect.
Oh the things I would do for these bars… they look SO good, Audra!
These look so wonderful! I haven’t had a sugar cookie in ages. I love that there is no chilling and you just press it in to a pan. Easy peasy! :)
these look absolutely perfect. I haven’t had a sugar cookie in far too long. This would make the perfect afternoon pick me up :)
These are gorgeous. You’ll be rocking a royal-icing filled piping bag in no time.
Uh. Sugar cookies without the extra work?! Sign me up! These look awesome! I also have frosting/cake decorating on my bucket list. It looks so awesome when done right!
I completely agree, regular sugar cookies are a pain in the butt. Besides, any excuse to slather buttercream onto something is the best!
Wow this looks delicious. I can’t wait to try it.
Check out my blog if you get a chance. It would mean a lot to me!
i love that you don’t have chill these and you can just press right away into a baking pan. these are so cute and festive! i love this!
These remind me of little girls! :)
I love simple recipes like these – easy and yummy :)
Oh yes, I have seen these on pinterest and keep meaning to make them! Love yours with the pink frosting and sprinkles, so pretty!
I keep seeing these around the blogosphere and I keep saying I am going to make them…but I never get around to it. I swear, I am going to make these!!
Just made these last night for Valentine’s Day today , and they turned out soooo yummy ! Everyone at work LOVED them and my boyfriend and I couldn’t stop snacking on them! Thanks so much for this recipe. I posted a picture of them on instagram and facebook and people were requesting for me to make them lol. A wonderful treat <3
Yay! I’m so glad you liked them! Happy Valentine’s Day! xo
How long do these keep I was planning on making them a little over 24 hours in advance, but want to make sure they still taste fresh. Does anybody know? I’m thinking the best way would be to make them and wait until before the party to frost them and cut them into squares. Ideas? :)
Hey Britt- I think they’d be fine made a day in advance. Just keep them airtight and in the fridge. Bring them to room temperature before serving!
i just made these cookies for a dinner i was going to and they didnt bake right. instead of solidifying they boiled inside the oven.
I’m not sure what went wrong! I’ve had much luck with this recipe every time I’ve made it. Sorry they didn’t turn out for you :(
Has anyone doubled this and put it in a jelly roll pan?
You could totally double this in a half sheet pan! (jelly roll pan) :)
Tried this last night and it didn’t turn out at all! It was like a had just baked a large plate of flour. It was dry and tasted of nothing but flour. I double-check and all ingredients were exact. Just thought I would touch base and see if anyone else had trouble?
It didn’t turn out as batter, more like dough. It was solid, sticky and I just patted it into the dish. It stayed in little balls/chunks, not liquidy at all. Perhaps I made a mistake somewhere? I used a 9×13 casserole type of dish. Maybe it was too thick?
I’m so sorry Christine- that’s frustrating. I wish I knew what went wrong for you but I don’t know how to pin-point it. The batter shouldn’t be liquidy, but should be the consistency of sugar cookie dough. Maybe you didn’t spread it evenly enough?
It seemed okay, but maybe I’ll try again some other time. Maybe something wasn’t fresh or I really did make a mistake in ingredients. :)
Just made these — so good!
Can I make this in a 10×15 pan?
Just made these – they came out wonderfully! I loved how the cookie wasn’t too sweet. I kinda wish I hadnt found this recipe… Sugar cookies are gonna be *way* too easy to make now!