Patriotic Sugar Cookie Bars
Soft, colorful and delicious, these Patriotic Sugar Cookie Bars are a fun holiday-themed recipe that are easy to make and even more fun to eat!
A TASTY PATRIOTIC BAR RECIPE
I love a good sugar cookie, but I really love them in bar form! These Patriotic Sugar Cookie Bars are a quick, easy and thick sugar cookie bar for that you will not be able to resist! Topped with a thick layer of frosting and sprinkled with fun star sprinkles, they bars are perfect for your holiday festivities. This Patriotic Sugar Cookie Bar recipe is as tasty and patriotic as they come!
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:
If you want a thinner bar you can make these in a 9″x 13″ or 11″x 7″ baking dish. You could also double the recipe, and make in a 9″x 13″ baking dish, if you want to make more bars but keep the same thickness.
If you are not a fan of cream cheese frosting you can make a basic buttercream if you’d like. You can also use canned frosting if you do not feel like making homemade.
I like to use red, white and blue “jimmies” for the sprinkles that in the batter. These types of sprinkles hold up better in baking since they don’t “bleed” into the batter. See ingredient image below for reference. For the top of the frosting, you can use any fun patriotic sprinkles. I used mini red, white and blue stars.
Since these have a cream cheese frosting they need to be stored in the refrigerator. Place in an airtight container and they should keep for up to 1 week. These can also be frozen unfrosted. Make your bars and then let cool. Wrap in plastic wrap, then wrap in foil and place in freezer. These should last for up to 3 months. To defrost, place on countertop until they come to room temperature. Then you can frost the bars at this point.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED: (FULL RECIPE AT THE BOTTOM OF THE POST)
- salted butter
- granulated sugar
- egg
- vanilla extract
- all-purpose flour
- baking powder
- patriotic sprinkles
- powdered sugar
- cream cheese
- milk
HOW TO MAKE PATRIOTIC SUGAR COOKIE BARS:
Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Line a 9″x 9″ baking pan with parchment paper. Beat together butter and sugar until fluffy.
Then beat in egg and vanilla extract.
Finally, beat in flour and baking powder, a little at a time, until you have a thick batter.
Gently stir in the sprinkles.
Spread batter into it prepared baking pan.
Bake at 350F degrees for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Once it’s finished baking, take cookie bar out of the oven and allow to cool fully. Once it is cooled, carefully lift the sides of the parchment paper to pull the whole cookie bar out of the baking pan.
To make the frosting, blend together powdered sugar, butter, cream cheese, vanilla and milk with an electric mixer.
Spread frosting generously on cookie bars.
Top with additional sprinkles. Cut into squares and serve immediately or let frosting set for a firmer feel.
CRAVING MORE RECIPES? GIVE THESE A TRY!
Patriotic Sugar Cookie Bars (+Video)
Ingredients
For the sugar cookie bars:
- 1 stick (1/2 cup) salted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ cup patriotic sprinkles
For the frosting:
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 stick (1/2 cup) salted butter, softened to room temperature
- 3 Tablespoons cream cheese, softened to room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 Tablespoons milk
- additional sprinkles, for topping
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Line a 9"x 9" baking pan with parchment paper.
- Beat together butter and sugar until fluffy. Then beat in egg and vanilla.
- Finally, beat in flour and baking powder, a little at a time, until you have a thick batter. Gently stir in the sprinkles.
- Spread batter into prepared baking pan.
- Bake at 350F degrees for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Once it's finished baking, take cookie bar out of the oven and allow to cool fully.
- Once it is cooled, carefully lift the sides of the parchment paper to pull the whole cookie bar out of the baking pan.
- To make the frosting, blend together powdered sugar, butter, cream cheese, vanilla and milk with an electric mixer.
- Spread frosting generously on cookie bar and top with additional sprinkles.
- Cut into squares and serve immediately or let frosting set for a firmer feel.
Video
Notes
- You can make these in a larger pan such as a 9″x 13 or 11″x 7″ pan if you want a thinner bar.
- You can use regular buttercream if you are not a fan of cream cheese frosting. Canned frosting can also be used.
- These bars can be frozen (see my tips above.)
- Jimmie style sprinkles work best in the dough so they do not bleed.
- Make sure these bars are fully cooled before frosting.
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
“The Country Cook” is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories and other nutritional values can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
Brandie,if I want the same thickness as in your photo but want to bake them in a 9×13″ pan,do I need to double the recipe,and also can I use unsalted butter and if so how much salt should I add?
Hey Dynasty, you could most certainly double this for a 9×13-inch pan. Now, I haven’t personally tested it in the larger pan myself so you might have to play the baking time by ear a bit since it will probably take a bit longer. As for the butter, there is approximately 1/4 teaspoon in each stick (or half cup) of salted butter. Hope that helps!
Brandie, someone on Pinterest said to double the recipe to get the thickness shown in the photo. Is that true?
No, only if you want to make it in a 9×13.
Yummy! I made these for a birthday party.. Used bright birthday Jimmie Sprinkles in the dough and small confetti sprinkles for the top. I tripled the recipe and did them in a roaster pan. Turned out great! Thank you for sharing your recipe.