These bars totally surpassed my expectations. They are so easy and so delicious. If you like sugar cookies (who doesn’t?!), you have to try these. Sugar cookie dough gets pressed into a pan and baked, then topped with buttercream frosting and sprinkles. The beauty of the this recipe is that you don’t have to roll out the cookie dough or bake and frost individual cookies. This recipe is so simple, it’s practically foolproof.
I was worried that these bars would end up dry but they didn’t. They came out perfectly and I made sure to under bake them just slightly so they would stay soft.You can decorate these with any color frosting or sprinkles you like. You can even leave out the food coloring and sprinkles and you’ll have perfect sugar cookie bars with pure white frosting. However you decorate them, I hope you enjoy them as much as we did.
Soft Sugar Cookie Bars
Makes one 9×13 pan
For the bars:
1 stick butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 egg white
1 heaping tablespoon sour cream
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon almond extract
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
For the frosting:
1 stick butter, softened
2 heaping cups powdered sugar
2 tablespoons milk, half and half or cream
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
a few drops of food coloring, optional
sprinkles, optional
For the bars:
Preheat oven to 375. Butter or spray a 9×13 baking pan and set it aside.
Beat butter and sugar for several minutes, until light and fluffy. Add egg, egg white, sour cream and extracts and beat until thoroughly combined. The mixture might look slightly curdled.
In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt. With your mixer on low, add flour to the butter mixture, mixing until just combined.
Dump the dough into the prepared pan and use your fingers to evenly press it into the pan. Bake for about 15 minutes, until the top appears dry and the edges are just starting to turn light brown. Rotate the pan halfway through the baking time if your oven does not bake evenly. Make sure not to over bake these, as they will continue to cook a little after you remove them from the oven. Cool the bars completely before frosting them.
For the frosting:
Beat butter and powdered sugar for several minutes until light and fluffy. Add milk, extract and food coloring (if using) and beat for several more minutes. Use an offset spatula or butter knife to spread the frosting over the cooled bars. Top with sprinkles and slice into squares.
Recipe adapted from The Baker Chick
Celebrating Sweets 