Gingerbread Cookie Bars
Craving Gingerbread Cookie Bars? This easy recipe delivers ultra-chewy, perfectly spiced bars with a tangy cream cheese frosting. The perfect holiday treat!
Equipment
- 1 9x13 inch metal baking pan (a "quarter sheet" pan)
- 1 Parchment paper
- 2-3 Mixing bowls (large, medium, small)
- 1 Whisk
- 1 Rubber spatula
- 1 Electric mixer (hand mixer or stand mixer) for the frosting
Ingredients
For the Gingerbread Bars:
- 1/2 cup 113g Unsalted Butter, melted
- 3/4 cup 160g Dark Brown Sugar, packed
- 1/2 cup 120ml Unsulphured Molasses (not Blackstrap)
- 1 large Egg
- 1 large Egg Yolk
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1 1/2 cups 180g All-Purpose Flour
- 1 tsp Baking Soda
- 2 tsp Ground Ginger
- 1 1/2 tsp Ground Cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp Ground Cloves
- 1/2 tsp Ground Nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp Salt
For the Cream Cheese Frosting:
- 4 oz 113g Cream Cheese, brick-style, softened
- 4 tbsp 57g Unsalted Butter, softened
- 2 cups 240g Powdered Sugar, sifted
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1/4 tsp Salt
Instructions
- Preheat & Prep: Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Line a 9x13 inch pan with parchment paper, leaving "handles" on the sides.
- Mix Wet: In a large bowl, whisk the melted butter and dark brown sugar. Add the molasses, egg, egg yolk, and vanilla and whisk until smooth.
- Mix Dry: In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and salt.
- Combine: Pour the dry ingredients into the wet. Fold with a spatula until just combined. Do not overmix.
- Bake: Spread the thick batter evenly into the prepared pan. Bake for 22-25 minutes. A toothpick inserted in the center should come out with moist crumbs, not clean.
- Cool: Let the bars cool completely in the pan.
- Frost: While the bars cool, make the frosting. In a large bowl, beat the softened cream cheese and softened butter with an electric mixer until smooth. On low speed, add the powdered sugar, then the vanilla and salt. Once incorporated, beat on medium-high for 2-3 minutes until light and fluffy.
- Finish: Spread the frosting over the cooled bars. Cut into 24 squares. Store in the refrigerator.
Notes
A final thought: the beauty of this Gingerbread Cookie Bars recipe is its simplicity. It's a "dump and stir" batter. The only place you can really go wrong is by overmixing or overbaking. Trust the process, trust the timer, and pull them out when they still look a tiny bit underdone. That's the secret to holiday magic.