Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars

Chocolate chip cookie bars are here to save the day! This recipe comes together in a snap and makes a perfect batch of soft, chewy cookie bars. You can easily scale the recipe up for a crowd or make this ahead for an amazing on-demand treat. I tested this recipe in a 9×13-inch pan, so you can easily make this recipe in a bigger batch. In this post, I teach you how to do this adjustment, plus how to add in your favorite mix-ins, and the best way to store your cookie bars to keep them soft.

A reader, Lori, says: “Oh so good! I took them out while still a little gooey in the center… oh my! Absolute heaven! Thank you, John, for another amazing recipe.” ★★★★★

Key Ingredients

These are the main ingredients you need to make these gooey chocolate chip cookie bars. You can find the full list of ingredients and measurements in the recipe card below.

Cornstarch — this is the secret ingredient to make soft cookie bars! The starch helps prevent gluten strands from forming when the flour is mixed with liquid, keeping the cookie bars nice and tender. You don’t need a lot for this effect to take place, so I just add 1 tablespoon to the dry ingredients.

Unsalted butter — while many of my cookie recipes, like my classic chocolate chip cookies, beat the butter and sugar to incorporate air for a better rise and spread, I use melted butter in this recipe. Why? I wanted gooey and chewy bars, not fluffy or cakey ones, so I didn’t want the added air. Plus, it means the batter simply stirs together without a mixer, making it super easy!

Sugar — I call for two types of sugar in this recipe. The granulated sugar helps produce a crispier edge and bottom crust that contrasts with the gooey center. The light brown sugar adds a chewy texture and retains more moisture thanks to the added molasses, keeping the bars softer for longer.

Eggs — large eggs bind all of the ingredients together, for cookie bars that are chewy and not too dense.

Chocolate chips — you can use any kind of chocolate chips in this recipe! I prefer semisweet, but you can use milk chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, or even roughly chopped chocolate bars for a variety of small pieces and big chocolate chunks throughout the bars.

Can I Bake These In A 9×13-inch pan?

Yes! To make a larger batch of bars, double the recipe and spread the dough into a 9×13-inch baking pan (grease and line the pan with parchment paper, first!). Bake at 350°F for about 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few crumbs. Once cooled, you can cut the bars into 24 small bars or 18 large bars.

Pro Tips For Making This Recipe

Measure your flour correctly! Adding too much flour to the recipe is the most common mistake and will result in cookie bars that are dense, dry, and crumbly. The best and easiest way to measure flour is by using a scale— going by a gram weight means you’ll have the exact same amount of flour every time. Scooping flour directly into a dry measuring cup can pack it in, and actually add up to ¼ cup (30g) of additional flour than called for in the recipe! If you don’t have a scale, avoid packing it by fluffing your flour with a spoon, then sprinkling it into your measuring cup, and use a knife to level it off.

Lining your baking dish COMPLETELY is essential. If you don’t have parchment paper, you can use foil instead, but don’t try to skip this or get away with butter and flouring the pan. These bars are soft and gooey, and you need the parchment paper to help them release from the pan more easily.

Add your favorite mix-ins! Swap some or part of the chocolate chips for M&Ms, crushed pretzels, chopped toasted nuts, toffee bits, shredded coconut, or dried cranberries.

Love a gooey brownie texture? Try under-baking this a bit and enjoy that same texture in these cookie bars! Reduce the bake time to 45 minutes for bars that are gooey in the center but not raw.

How To Make Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars

Below, I’ve highlighted portions of the recipe in step-by-step process images along with instructions for making these easy chocolate chip cookie bars. You can find the full set of instructions in the recipe card below.

1. Set the oven to 350°F and line your pan with parchment paper. Whisk the flour, corn starch, salt, and baking soda in a bowl and set aside.

2. Add the melted butter and sugars to a large bowl, then whisk together.

3. Add the eggs and vanilla extract.

4. Whisk together until well combined.

5. Add the wet to the dry and mix together with a rubber spatula until just almost combined. (A few dry streaks of flour remaining are okay!)

6. Now it’s time to add all the fun stuff. I’m sticking with chocolate chips, but you can add toasted nuts, sweetened coconut, or even dried fruits.

7. Mix until evenly distributed throughout the dough.

8. Transfer the cookie dough to your prepared dish and bake until the edges are golden brown, around 35 minutes. The edges will be set and puff slightly, but the center will be a bit soft. A skewer should come out with a few crumbs if inserted in the center, though. People at higher elevations will need a longer bake 🙂

4.96 from 1657 votes

Chocolate Chip Cookie Bar Recipe

These soft and chewy chocolate chip cookie bars are beyond easy to make and full of chocolatey goodness with notes of brown sugar, vanilla, and salt.

Save Recipe Saved! Print Recipe

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 55 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour 5 minutes minutes

Servings 16 bars

Calories 367kcal

Author John Kanell

Video

Equipment

• ▢
  8×8 inch pan

Ingredients

• ▢ 2¼ cups all-purpose flour (270g)
• ▢ 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• ▢ 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ▢ 1 teaspoon salt
• ▢ ¾ cup unsalted butter melted and cooled slightly (170g)
• ▢ 1 cup packed light brown sugar (220g)
• ▢ ⅔ cup granulated sugar (133g)
• ▢ 2 large eggs room temperature
• ▢ 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• ▢ 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips divided (360g)

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line an 8×8-inch baking pan fully with parchment paper.
• In a medium bowl, whisk to combine the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
• In a large bowl, combine the melted butter and the sugars. Whisk together for about 30 seconds to form a somewhat thick slurry.
• Add the eggs and vanilla to the butter mixture and whisk well for about 1 minute to combine.
• Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and stir together with a silicone spatula until almost fully combined. Reserve about ¼ cup of chocolate chips, and stir the remaining into the dough.
• Dollop the dough into the prepared baking pan. Using an offset spatula, spread into an even layer, leaving some texture on top. Sprinkle with the reserved chocolate chips.
• Bake for about 55 minutes until the edges are set and golden brown, and a toothpick or skewer inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs. Let the cookie bars cool in the pan for about an hour before removing and cutting.

Notes

• A sprinkle of flaky sea salt on top just after baking provides a nice bit of contrast for a salty-sweet chocolate chip cookie flavor. This is totally optional, but a finishing touch I add to my bars frequently!
• To cleanly cut the bar cookies, let the baked cookie bar slab cool completely before slicing it. Use the excess parchment paper to lift the slab out of the pan and place it on a cutting board. Using a large, straight-edged knife (like a chef’s knife), cut the slab into bars, wiping the blade clean occasionally.
• How To Store: Keep the cookie bars in an airtight container to keep them from drying out. They will keep well for 3 to 5 days at room temperature. You can also wrap the baked bars and freeze them in a container for up to 3 months.
• How To Keep The Bars Soft: Store them in an airtight container so they don’t dry out, and add a few large marshmallows to the container! The cookie bars will absorb moisture from the marshmallows and stay soft and gooey for longer.

Nutrition

Calories: 367kcal | Carbohydrates: 48g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 0.4g | Cholesterol: 45mg | Sodium: 229mg | Potassium: 176mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 30g | Vitamin A: 307IU | Calcium: 34mg | Iron: 2mg

*Nutrition Disclaimer

Have you Tried this Recipe? Tag me Today!Mention @preppykitchen and tag #preppykitchen!

Serving Suggestions

While a square of these cookie bars is perfect with a cup of coffee or a cold glass of milk for dunking, you can do a lot of fun things to jazz them up! Here are some of my favorite ways to turn them into the ultimate dessert:

• Make a sundae: Top a bar with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, drizzle with hot fudge sauce or strawberry sauce, and finish with whipped cream and sprinkles.
• Decorate with frosting: Pipe or spread your favorite buttercream on top and decorate with sprinkles, candies, or fresh fruit to make a cookie cake! My favorite frostings to pair with these bars are chocolate buttercream, a classic American buttercream, strawberry frosting, and cream cheese frosting.

More Cookie Recipes To Try

Try one of my other popular cookie recipes next!

My super-easy peanut butter cookies have been one of the top recipes on my site for years! They are soft in the center, crispy on the edges, and packed with creamy peanut butter.

These double chocolate chip cookies are fudgy in the center with a lovely chewiness that makes them irresistible. The dough doesn’t require any chill time, so you can whip up a batch in under 30 minutes.

A classic flavor combo, my cookies and cream cookies are perfect for Oreo lovers! They are speckled with crushed Oreos and white chocolate chips, and flavored with plenty of good vanilla extract.

Soft and fluffy, sour cream cookies are topped off with a spread of butter cream for a delicious treat. They are easy to whip up and decorate for any holiday or occasion!

Oatmeal chocolate chip cookies are the perfect combination of crisp edges and chewy centers. They are packed with rolled oats, chocolate chips, and just the right amount of salt to balance the flavor.

If you’ve tried this chocolate chip cookie bars recipe, then don’t forget to rate it and let me know how you got on in the comments below. I love hearing from you!