We LOVE sugar cookies at our house, but I don’t always have the time for chilling the dough, rolling out the cookies, carefully decorating each of them, and cleaning up the mess involved. Enter these easy sugar cookies bars that can be made in around 20 minutes (plus cooling time between baking and frosting) and are super holiday and kid friendly. If you enjoy Halloween as much as I do, then you’ll no doubt love other great Halloween recipes like Poison Candied Apples and Chocolate Blossom Sprinkle Cookies. Both are Spooktacular in their own merit and definitely get thumbs up and smiles from the beasties kiddos! As the name implies, these cookies are baked in a large pan to make several bars at once. One of my favorite ways to make cookies is making bar cookies like this one and my Carmelitas because it means I don’t have to chill dough, roll balls, or deal with trying to get every cookie to be the exact same size. Bar cookies are a fantastic no hassle approach to getting soft and delicious cookies without all of the stress! They also have the added bonus of being just a little bit thicker than my standard cut-out sugar cookies, which I’m not complaining about! Frost them with a colored vanilla buttercream (orange? purple? green? it’s so hard to decide!) and your favorite festive Halloween sprinkle assortment and some googly eye sprinkles to create a festive and boo-tiful appearance. See what I did there? 😉
Ingredients in Sugar Cookie Bars
For the cookie dough we will need:
Salted butter: Softened salted butter makes for a rich cookie that’s soft and flavorful. Sugar: Granulated sugar makes these sugar cookies sweet, obviously, but also contributes to the texture of the bars. Eggs: Eggs are a great binder for baking, add flavor, richness, and moisture. One whole egg PLUS an extra egg yolk makes an excellent dough so that the cookies won’t fall apart. Vanilla: This ingredient adds classic flavor to the cookies. Since the flavors in sugar cookies are simple, I recommend using the best quality vanilla extract you have access to in this recipe. Flour: All-purpose flour is an integral part of most cookie recipes. I haven’t tried these with a gluten-free 1-to-1 baking flour substitute, but I have had good luck with many of those in the past. Baking powder: Since we aren’t cutting out shapes and worrying about spreading with these bars, a little leavening is a good addition to the dough because it make these cookies just a bit softer than normal. Salt: A bit of salt will enhance the flavors in this dough and make these cookies taste great!
For the frosting we will need:
Powdered sugar: This is a classic american buttercream and it uses powdered sugar for sweetness and structure. Salted butter: I always use softened salted butter in my buttercream frosting. Vanilla: This makes a classic flavored frosting. You could also consider adding other extract, but start with a very small amount if using extract like coconut or almond, which are more potent than vanilla. Heavy cream: This makes the frosting creamy and spreadable. You can use regular milk if you don’t have heavy cream on hand. Food coloring: This is my favorite food coloring (affiliate link) that is concentrated and perfect for coloring buttercream. I used mostly orange with a few drops of yellow to achieve the color I used for these bars. Sprinkles: Use your favorite Halloween sprinkles to add colorful decoration to these cookie bars.
The frosted bars can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature on the counter for 4-5 days.
Where do I find Halloween Sprinkles?
Most every grocery store and craft store has festive Halloween sprinkles in their baking or seasonal aisle around this time of year. I scored the fun sprinkles I used on these bars at Target.
How long are frosted sugar cookies good for?
If properly stored in an airtight container at room temperature, for up to a week for best tasting results.
Can I freeze decorated sugar cookies?
Yes! After the cookies have cooled completely and have been frosted and decorated, let the frosting sit for a few hours until it’s not so soft and messy to the touch. Once they’ve done that, you can freeze them for up to 3 months. A good way to do this is to flash freeze individually cut cookie bars arranged on a baking sheet until solid (about an hour) and then place them in neatly arranged rows inside an airtight container. If you have to layer them then add a piece of wax paper or parchment paper between each layer to prevent sticking.
More Easy Halloween Recipes
Homemade Caramel Apples Halloween Chocolate Cherry Hand Pies Twix Carmel Popcorn and Halloween Poppers Halloween Chex Mix Dark Chocolate Halloween Chip Cookies Marshmallow Popcorn Balls Day of the Dead Black Buttercream Cake Chocolate Cut Out Sugar Cookies
More Spooky Treats
Halloween Cookies & Bar Let me know what you thought with a comment and rating below. You can also take a picture and tag me on Instagram @houseofnasheats or share it on the Pinterest pin so I can see.
Cake Mix Monster Cookies from Big Bear’s Wife Candy Bar Cookies from Devour Dinner Oreo Mummy Cookies from Savory Experiments Easy Halloween Cake Mix Sprinkle Cookies from Family Around the Table Halloween Sugar Cookie Bars from House of Nash Eats Eye Love Chocolate Sugar Cookies from An Affair From the Heart Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars form Back To My Southern Roots
Halloween Cakes & Cupcakes:
Bloody Broken Glass Red Velvet Cake from Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks Halloween Bats Oreo Cupcakes from Lemon Blossoms Pumpkin Cupcakes with Maple Frosting from The Flour Handprint
Halloween Brownies:
The Scream Brownies from West Via Midwest Halloween Monster Chocolate Cake Brownies from JZ Eats Halloween Marshmallow Brownies from Sweet Beginnings
Halloween Pies:
Halloween Mini S’mores Pudding Pies from For the Love of Food Jack Skellington Boo-berry Pie from Savory Moments
Halloween Breakfast:
Halloween Smoothie Bowl from Fresh Coast Eats Halloween Pancakes from I Am A Honeybee Pumpkin Spice Donuts from Pastry Chef Online
Halloween Drinks:
Bloody Hot Cocoa from It’s Shanaka
Chilled Halloween Treats:
Pennywise Ice Cream Float from Cheese Curd in Paradise Wicked Witch Popsicles from A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures
No Bake Desserts:
Muddy Buddy Halloween Snack Mix from Tastes of Homemade Candy Corn Rice Crispy Treats from The Spiffy Cookie Kid-Friendly Halloween Snack Board from Love and Confections Rice Krispie Treat Haunted Houses from Sweet ReciPEAS Ghostly Snack Mix from Fake Ginger Spooky Pretzel Rods from Take Two Tapas Halloween Candy Bark from Karen’s Kitchen Stories Batty For Chocolate Dessert Cheese Ball from 4 Sons R Us Pumpkin Spice Cheesecake Dip from Strawberry Blondie Kitchen
