Part of my Joy Today is in the fact that I can enjoy sweet treats without my ED telling me I’m going to get fat. No food guilt here, friends. I don’t need to eat the whole pan in one day, but I must say, having a bar for a snack is quite enjoyable. Especially enjoyable to me is one of these Frosted Sugar Cookie Bars for my after supper snack.
These are probably my favorite bar right now. I know which is my favorite because when my boys want a snack, my favorite becomes my go-to bar. I’ve made these Frosted Sugar Cookie Bars 3 times in the last week. (My boys eat a 9×13 pan of bars pretty quickly.) Plus the fact that these take about 10 minutes to whip together helps. I like fast. If I’m feeling especially rushed I don’t make the frosting for the top. They are still melt-in-the-mouth good. But that frosting . . . the frosting adds the eye roll to the back of the head with the “oh my gosh” look on the face and the plethora of “mmm mmm-ing” while savoring.
This is the same recipe I use for normal sugar cookies, so if you aren’t feeling the Frosted Sugar Cookie Bars, just make the cookie instead. And if you are feeling especially fancy, use this recipe to make these. In fact, I use this sugar cookie recipe for a lot of different variations. I could do a month of blog posts just using this recipe. I could do my first theme month on my blog. “All Things Sugar Cookie Recipe”. And you wouldn’t want to miss it. I can make some pretty tasty treats with this mix of butter, sugar, and flour.
When it was my youngest’s birthday last month, he wanted sugar cookies for his birthday treat to school. I got all excited, until he told me he wanted the Walmart sugar cookies with frosting. Them’s are fighting words for me. When I had to scan that $6 package of cookies across the self checkout, I had to maintain a physical determination just to get them to beep their price onto my order. Painful.
My boys know how much I detest the fact that they like those Walmart cookies. I get that some might think they are tasty. I won’t even tell you my dear husband’s reaction to those store-bought cookies. I don’t take away that maybe Walmart can make an okay cookie. But there is no way possible in this great big world that those Walmart cookies are anywhere near as good as this recipe. Nowhere near. I will take anyone on in a challenge against any other sugar cookie recipe out there. This is hands down the best.
And I guess the fact that a 9×13 pan of these lasts .2 seconds in my house speaks to the fact that my boys do in fact think they are tasty.
So, make them. Then tell me I’m right. You might just find your own little cut of Joy Today in the freedom of enjoying a treat at the end of your day.
Frosted Sugar Cookie Bars
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter softened
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 tbsp vanilla
- 3 cups flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 cups white chocolate chips
Frosting
- 1 stick butter softened
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 4-6 cups powdered sugar
- 1/4 cup milk or heavy cream
Instructions
Sugar Cookie Bars
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Cream the butter and sugar until smooth.
- Add the eggs and vanilla and again beat until smooth.
- Add the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt and beat on low until the flour is mixed in and then beat on medium until dough is thoroughly mixed together.
- Add the white chocolate chips and beat once again until chips are mixed evenly.
- Turn the sugar cookie dough into a greased 9x13. Wetten your fingers and press the dough evenly into the pan. Re-wetten your fingers if the dough starts to stick so you can pat the dough down evenly.
- Bake for 21 minutes. They should be slightly golden brown but mostly if you touch them you'll think they are too soft to be done. This is the key to making these bars spectacular! Set aside to cool.
Frosting
- Beat the butter, vanilla and salt.
- Add 2 cups of the powdered sugar until creamed.
- Add the milk or heavy cream and again beat until creamy. (If you are using heavy cream, you may have to add more because it is thicker than the milk.
- Continue adding cups of powdered sugar until it is frosting consistency.
- Frost the mostly cooled bars evenly.
- Put in fridge for 4 hours or overnight so that they set up perfectly.
- Cut and let the melting-in-the-mouth begin!
