These soft and chewy Gingerbread Bars couldn’t be easier to make! They are deliciously spicy with just the right amount of cream cheese frosting! They feed a crowd, so they’re perfect for holiday parties and cookie trays.
These bars have a soft, chewy gingerbread cookie base. Basically, they’re a gingerbread brownie covered in luscious cream cheese frosting.
To say I’m obsessed with all things gingerbread would be a huge understatement! Including this Gingerbread Bars recipe, I currently have nine gingerbread recipes.
GINGERBREAD RECIPES:
- Gingerbread Cookie Bars (recipe below)
- Hanging Gingerbread Cookies
- Gingerbread OREO Truffles
- Gingerbread Cookies with Orange Glaze
- Homemade Gingerbread Houses Recipe
- Gingerbread Cheesecake Dip (my most popular holiday recipe)
- Gingerbread Cupcakes with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting
- Chocolate Dipped Gingerbread Drop Cookies
- Gingerbread Waffles
Gingerbread obsessed indeed, folks!
These Gingerbread Cookie Bars are just the thing to make when you want a gingerbread fix and need it quickly! They’re so easy to make, let me show you how!
Instructions
- First, whisk together the dry ingredients.
- Beat together sugar, brown sugar, butter, vanilla, and molasses.
- Mix in the egg.
- Then, beat in the dry ingredients.
- Spread the cookie batter into the prepared jelly roll pan. Bake and cool the cookie bars completely.
- Once the bars are cool, mix together the cream cheese frosting.
- Next, spread the cream cheese frosting over the cookie bars.
- Finally, top with holiday sprinkles. Slice and serve!
Storage Tips
SERVE: You can keep these out for about 2 hours before covering and storing in the refrigerator.
STORE: Store these bars in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
FREEZE: If you freeze the gingerbread bars, it’s best to leave off the sprinkles, as many tend to “melt” in the freezer. To freeze, space the bars out on a baking sheet and freeze until solid, about 1-2 hours. Then wrap the bars in two layers of plastic wrap and foil. Next, place the bars in a freezer-safe Ziploc bag and freeze for 1-2 months.
DEFROST: Unwrap the bars and then thaw at room temperature for 2-4 hours.
Recipe FAQ’s
Cooking molasses is the type typically used in gingerbread cookies. Cooking molasses makes it dark and full of flavor, adding a delicious taste to the cookies.
Gingerbread cookie dough is firm, so it can be tricky to roll out and cut into shapes. Also, the more you handle the dough, the tougher the cookies can get.
This is another reason why I love these cookie bars so much. They are super easy to make, and you don’t have to worry about over-handling the dough when cutting out shapes. Because they’re not the easiest to make, I like making these gingerbread bars for holiday cookie trays that I give to neighbors, friends, and family.
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Chewy Gingerbread Cookie Bars
Equipment
- rimmed cookie sheet
- mixing bowl
- stand mixer or handheld mixer
- rubber scraper
Ingredients
COOKIE BARS:
- ½ cup butter melted
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup dark brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ⅓ cup molasses
- 1 large egg
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ½ teaspoon salt
CREAM CHEESE FROSTING:
- 6 ounces cream cheese softened
- 3 Tablespoons butter softened
- 2 ¼ cups powdered sugar
- ¾ teaspoon vanilla
- holiday sprinkles optional
Instructions
MAKE GINGERBREAD COOKIE BARS:
- Move oven rack to middle position and preheat to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9×13-inch jelly roll pan with non-stick cooking spray; set aside.
- In a large bowl whisk together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, and salt; set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer on medium speed, or in a large bowl using handheld beaters, cream together butter, sugars, vanilla, and molasses until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes.
- Mix in egg until completely combined. Add dry ingredients and pulse mixer/handheld beaters until flour is incorporated. Increase mixing speed to medium and mix until well combined, about 1 minute.
- Spread dough evenly into prepared pan. Bake 15-20 minutes, or until darker in color and toothpick inserted comes out with just a few moist crumbs. Move pan to wire rack and cool completely before frosting.
MAKE CREAM CHEESE FROSTING:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer on medium speed, or in a large bowl using handheld beaters, cream together cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes.
- Add powdered sugar and vanilla, and pulse to combine, then increase mixing speed to medium-high and mix until creamy, about 1-2 minutes.
TO FINISH:
- Frost cooled cookie bars with cream cheese frosting. Garnish with holiday sprinkles, slice in 24 bars, and serve.
Notes
- These will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- This recipe makes 24 cookie bars, so make sure you have plans for sharing them!
Nutrition
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I don’t have dark brown sugar… will light brown sugar work instead?
Yes, you can use light brown sugar instead of dark brown sugar. The primary difference between light and dark brown sugar is the molasses content; dark brown sugar has more molasses, which gives it a richer flavor and darker color. Using light brown sugar will result in a slightly lighter color and milder molasses flavor, but it will still work well in the recipe.
Did you use salted or unsalted butter in the gingerbread bars recipe?
I used unsalted butter 🙂
I accidentally used a larger jelly roll pan so the batter spread thin, but they still came out delicious! The entire family loved them!
Hello! Are these baked in a jelly roll pan or a 9×13? A jelly roll pan standard is 10×15 and sometimes 18×13, so I want to make sure I’m making them to the correct thickness! Thanks!
This recipe is baked in a 9×13 inch pan.
Took these to our New Years Eve get-together, and they were a hit! My friends kept the leftovers, and they wanted the recipe! I followed the recipe exactly.
Can I use a 9/13 glass pan? I don’t have a jelly roll pan.
Yes you can 🙂
I made these for Christmas and they were amazing. Definitely will be making these again!
I’m making these for Christmas tomorrow. They look an smell amazing. Should I wait and make the frosting tomorrow or are they okay if I frost them now?
You can definitely wait to make the frosting.
I plan to cook in 8×8 pan. Any thoughts on how long to bake?
For an 8×8 pan, you can try 325°F and start checking at around 20 minutes, then every 5 minutes until done.
Amazing! These are perfectly soft and so delicious. Definitely a recipe to incorporate into your holiday season.
Jill, I’m thrilled that you enjoyed these gingerbread bars! Thanks for stopping by. 🙂
Can I make these into gingerbread men ?
Please let me know.
No, they are too thick and not sturdy to make into gingerbread me. BUT I do have a recipe that’s perfect for making gingerbread men: https://foodfolksandfun.net/gingerbread-cookies-with-orange-glaze/
Have you tried freezing these ahead of time? I made them and they’re delicious! I’m doing a VIP party and was curious if you’ve tried to freeze them.
I have not, but I imagine it would work. I suggest freezing them on a cookie sheet, and then wrapping in foil, and finally wrapping in plastic/Ziploc bag. Also, wait to add the sprinkles until you serve them.