I will admit that I’m one of those people who can’t resist eating the unbaked cookie dough when I make chocolate chip cookies at home. So when I saw several different recipes for Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bars over on Pinterest, I knew it was inevitable that I’d give the recipe a try myself one of these days!
A few weeks ago, my daughter participated in an art show and we volunteered to bring some desserts to the opening party – so it was the perfect excuse to try out the recipe for these chocolate chip cookie dough bars. They totally lived up to the hype, and needless to say – these bars were a big hit with kids and adults alike!
What’s great about this recipe is that you get that cookie dough flavor and texture – but without the raw eggs so it’s completely safe to eat. And – OMG – these decadent bars are so very delicious!
The original recipe topped the bars with a frosting made from a combination of peanut butter and milk chocolate. But because we were bringing these chocolate chip cookie dough bars to an event and wanted to avoid any issues surrounding peanut allergies, I adapted the recipe by making a ganache out of semi-sweet chocolate chips and a little bit of cream. I have to say that the semi-sweet chocolate ganache was a perfect contrast to the sweetness of the cookie dough filling, but I would imagine the original topping would be delicious as well.
I also made ours in a 9×9-inch square pan – but the original recipe suggested an 8×8-inch pan. Either size will work – if you use the smaller pan, the bars will be smaller but thicker while using the larger plan will give you flatter and wider bars like the ones shown here. Either way – these chocolate chip cookie dough bars are delicious!
Adapted from Life’s Simple Measures.
PrintChocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bars
*If you are concerned about eating uncooked flour, before starting this recipe microwave the 2 cups flour on high for 1 minute 30 seconds (stir every 15 second or so) until it reaches a temperature of 160 degrees F. Allow to cool before making this recipe.
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 5 mins
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 16–20 bars 1x
Ingredients
For the cookie dough filling
- 1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour*
- 1 14–ounce can sweetened condensed milk
- 2 cups mini chocolate chips
For the Ganache
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
Instructions
- Start by lining a 9×9-inch or 8×8-inch square pan with a sheet of parchment paper, making sure that the edges of the paper are large enough to extend up the sides of the pan. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together the softened butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and mix until well combined.
- With the mixer on a low speed, alternate adding in the flour and the sweetened condensed milk until all of it has been added and the mixture is completely blended. Fold in the mini chocolate chips by hand until evenly blended.
- Press the cookie dough into the prepared pan and press down to spread the dough evenly to the edges. (I found it helpful to put a piece of plastic wrap over the dough while I pressed down.)
- Cover the cookie dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm – at least 3 hours or overnight.
- The next day, prepare the ganache at least a few hours before serving. In microwave safe bowl, combine the chocolate chips and cream. Heat on high for one minute and stir the chocolate chips and cream together. Continue heating in 30 second increments and stirring after each until the chocolate chips are fully melted and combined with the cream.
- Pour the ganache over the cookie dough bars, spreading evenly to the edges of the bars. Chill the bars for a least one hour or until the ganache is set.
- When ready to serve, carefully pull up on the edges of the parchment paper and remove the chilled cookie dough from the pan. Using a long knife, cut the dough into bite-sized bars and serve.
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.
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These were horrible, the chocolate topping was perfect but the texture and taste is nothing close to cookie dough
Sorry you were disappointed Lizzie
Do you spoon the flour into the measuring cup or do you pack it in? That might be part of the consistency issue.
Hi Beth – We always spoon the flour into the measuring cup.
Yuck! The “cookie dough” part of this was terrible; the texture was not good (like molasses) and the flavor was just as bad unfortunately. I pitched what I made, sorry but I would not recommend this to anyone.
Hi Nikki – We’re sorry you had issues with the recipe. A texture like molasses doesn’t sound right at all – did you put in enough flour?
You really should toast your flour before you make this recipe. Raw flour can be just as harmful as raw eggs. Spread it out on a baking sheet and bake for 5 minutes at 350 to kill any bacteria like e-coli that may be present. It’ll add a slightly nutty flavor to the flour but that will probably make it taste even better and it’ll be safe!
Thanks for the suggestion Jeff!
I made this for my mother for Mother’s Day and she loved them
I’m so glad she enjoyed the recipe Adriene! Thank you for taking the time to write to us today.
What? No baking?
Nope! It’s a no-bake recipe Judy – meant to resemble cookie dough. 🙂
Can these be frozen to keep them fresher longer especially the ganache
Hi Chelsea – I haven’t tried freezing them…I think refrigerating them would be fine but I’m not sure about freezing.
Thank you
Made these, loved them! Will make them again, no need for the chocolate ganache. Just need a spoon 😉
Thanks Christina! 🙂
I made these and found them to have a bit of a “floury” taste. I will try them again and reduce the amount of flour.
Thanks for the feedback Jackie! Reducing the flour will change the firmness of the final bars but if you are OK with that feel free to adjust the recipe however you’d like to suit your tastes!