Tessa’s Recipe Rundown

TASTE: Just like my famous Soft & Chewy Sugar Cookies but in bar form, topped with rich cocoa frosting and sprinkles on top!
TEXTURE: The sugar cookie bars are soft and chewy, while the frosting is thick, rich, and creamy. The sprinkles provide a tiny crunch.
EASE: Very easy!
PROS: Fun and playful dessert that’ll take you back to your childhood. Perfect for small celebrations!
CONS: None.
WOULD I MAKE THIS AGAIN? Definitely!

This post may contain affiliate links. Read our disclosure policy.

One bite of these Chocolate Frosted Sugar Cookie Bars, and you’ll be transported back to being a kid enjoying a delicious treat after school.

the full slab of cookie bars, covered with chocolate frosting and sprinkles.

I love to take sweet childhood favorites and make them even better.

No one in my family baked from scratch, so most of my after-school treats were Little Debbie or Hostess. That’s why I have created so many copycat recipes, like my Cosmic Brownies, Oatmeal Cream Pies, and Fudge Rounds.

Though not a copycat recipe, these Chocolate Frosted Sugar Cookie Bars are totally reminiscent of childhood. With fun colors and classic flavors, they are sure to be a big hit with kids of any age.

a slice of Chocolate Frosted Sugar Cookie Bar on a white plate, ready to serve.

I modeled these cookie bars after my crazy-popular viral Soft & Chewy Sugar Cookies. All the same delicious flavors and soft, chewy sugar cookie texture, but in bar form.

Then there’s the frosting. I’m mildly obsessed with this chocolate frosting! It’s super easy to make, requires only a few ingredients, and is perfectly rich, fluffy, and so creamy.

I hope you enjoy these little squares of nostalgia as much as I do!

the full sliced pan of Chocolate Frosted Sugar Cookie Bars, sliced, on a pale pink background.

graphic of Tessa Arias of Handle the Heat holding a whisk.

Sprinkle of Science

Measure accurately. If you don’t measure your ingredients with a digital kitchen scale, you could accidentally add too much flour, causing hard, dry, or super cakey cookie bars. If you don’t have a scale, use the ‘spoon and level’ method.
Oven temperature. Be sure your oven is actually at the temperature it says it is. Learn more about that in my Oven 101 article. If you don’t already have an oven thermometer, grab one now – they’re inexpensive and really help your baking!
Don’t reduce the sugar! Sugar does so much more than simply sweetening these cookie bars. Learn more about sugar’s role in baking here.

Melted Butter?

In my Soft & Chewy Sugar Cookies recipe, the butter temperature is crucial to preventing the cookies from overspreading – but because we’re making cookie bars here, spreading isn’t an issue. Melted butter gives these cookie bars a great texture and makes them quicker and easier. You won’t even need a mixer for the cookie bar base!

What Type of Cocoa Powder for the Chocolate Frosting?

Feel free to use any type of cocoa powder you prefer here. When testing these cookie bars, my team and I used Ghirardelli Unsweetened Cocoa Powder, but any type of natural/unsweetened cocoa powder will work. You can use Dutch-processed cocoa instead if preferred.

Learn more about Natural Cocoa vs. Dutch Process Cocoa Powder here.

collage of images showing how to prepare, bake, frost and slice cookie bars.

This recipe yields perfectly soft and chewy cookie bars, and using a pan that conducts heat effectively is important.
I highly recommend using a light-colored metal pan, like my favorite from USA Pan here.
I don’t recommend using glass, ceramic, or silicone pans – learn why in my Glass vs. Metal Baking Pans post here.
This recipe was written to use an 8 by 8-inch baking pan. If you only have a slightly smaller or larger baking pan, please note that your cookie bars’ thickness will change, so the bake time will also need to be adjusted.

What if I Don’t Have a Metal Pan?

If you must use glass or ceramic, drop the baking temperature by 25°F and increase the baking time by 5-10 minutes. Note that your cookie bars may be on the drier side, and they might sink more in the middle.

Sure! Simply double all ingredients and bake in a light-colored metal 9 by 13-inch baking pan, adding a few minutes to the bake time.

I have a recipe for that! Use my Soft & Chewy Sugar Cookie recipe here. I used that recipe as the base for these sugar cookie bars, making minor adjustments to the recipe to result in perfect, easy cookie bars. Feel free to frost the cooled cookies with the chocolate frosting recipe below and top with sprinkles. You could even turn them into sandwich cookies and roll the edges in sprinkles, making a fun and festive treat.

Do I Have to Add the Chocolate Frosting?

Of course, I wholeheartedly believe that these Chocolate Frosted Sugar Cookie Bars are perfect with the addition of the fudgy frosting – but if that’s not your thing, feel free to skip it!

You could also top these bars with any frosting you’d like! Peanut Butter Buttercream or Cream Cheese Frosting would be delicious! Check out 10+ Buttercream flavor ideas here.

the chocolate fudge frosting in a bowl, ready to frost the bars.

Bake your sugar cookie bars until they’re just lightly golden brown on top and the center springs back when lightly pressed. You can also insert a skewer in the middle to check that only moist crumbs are attached. Residual heat will continue to bake the cookie bars through, and they will firm up as they cool.

Allow the cookie bars to cool completely before slicing.
Using a large sharp knife, slice the bars into 16 equal slices.
Run the knife under hot water and carefully wipe dry in between cuts for perfect, clean slices.
If your cookie bar edges are slightly dry (which may happen if you slightly overbake, or if you use a glass, ceramic, or silicone baking pan), feel free to trim the edges off before slicing and serving.

Store Chocolate Frosted Sugar Cookie Bars in an airtight container for 2 days at room temperature or up to 5 days in the fridge. For a super fudgy frosting, serve the bars chilled!

Unfrosted Sugar Cookie Bars can be frozen as a whole slab wrapped in plastic wrap and placed inside an airtight container for up to one month. Thaw overnight in the fridge or for a few hours at room temperature before frosting and serving.

We have not tried freezing the frosted sugar cookie bars; however, the cookie bar edges may dry out in the freezer, and the frosting might weep as it thaws. Let us know how it goes if you give it a try!

the whole pan of cookie bars with chocolate frosting and rainbow sprinkles sliced evenly, ready to serve.

More Nostalgic Recipes You’ll Love:

Yours, for Free

Get your free cookie customization chart now!

graphic of the cookie customization guide.

Get the cookie guide

cream cheese frosting swirls with sprinkles.

photo of Tessa wearing a white shirt and jeans, frosting a chocolate cake.

About Tessa

I share trusted baking recipes your friends will LOVE alongside insights into the science of sweets. I’m a professionally trained chef, cookbook author, and cookie queen. I love to write about all things sweet, carb-y, and homemade. I live in Phoenix, Arizona (hence the blog name!).