The Best Gingerbread Bar Recipe
If you love the flavour of gingerbread cookies then you are going to fall for these deliciously chewy gingerbread cookie bars. This recipe makes the best, most perfect gingerbread treats for the holiday season.
These gingerbread bar cookies are perfect for the baker who is not a fan on cookie cutters and decorating elaborate Christmas cookies. This easy recipe makes the perfect holiday treat, full of your favorite holiday spices, without all of the work!
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These chewy cookie bars are an easy alternative to my old-fashioned gingerbread cookies without sacrificing on taste. It’s a good idea to stock the pantry with a few different things that I like to have on hand.
Cookie bars are super simple to make! Be sure to check out some of my other bar recipes; these chocolate chip brownie bars, the best chocolate chip bars and peanut butter rice krispie bars.
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Gingerbread supplies:
- KitchenAid Stand Mixer
- Parchment paper
- Mixing bowls
- Measuring cups and spoons
- Square baking pan
- Wire cooling rack
Gingerbread Bar Recipe:
Ingredients:
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 3/4 cup butter, melted
- 3/4 cup white sugar
- 1/2 cup fancy molasses
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 egg
- 1 tub vanilla frosting
- 1 tsp sprinkles
Tip: While I love time saving hacks like store bought frosting, you can make delicious cream cheese frosting at home simply by combining powdered sugar and room temperature cream cheese.
Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Using a KitchenAid mixer with paddle attachment or electric mixer with a large bowl, combine dry ingredients.
3. Add wet ingredients and mix on medium speed until dough forms.
4. Grease a 9 x 9” baking pan with non stick cooking spray or line with parchment paper.
5. Spread dough evenly in the prepared pan.
6. Bake for 20-25 minutes until the center is firm.
7. Move to a wire rack to cool.
8. Allow the gingerbread to completely cool before removing from the baking dish.
9. Spread frosting evenly over top of the gingerbread.
10. Dust with festive sprinkles.
11. Cut into 2” bars and serve.
Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week or in a freezer bag in the freezer for months.
This gingerbread cookie bar recipe is wonderful as is but you can make a few substitutions if desired.
Substitute ingredients:
- I routinely use room temperature butter instead of shortening in the recipe.
- Dark brown sugar can be used in place of regular.
- Fancy molasses, light molasses or dark corn syrup can all be used for molasses.
- Fluffy cream cheese frosting or rich buttercream frosting may be used instead of the kind from the grocery store.
- Top with chocolate chips, little gingerbread men sprinkles or toffee bits.
More gingerbread recipes:
- This old-fashioned gingerbread cake makes the perfect dessert! It’s baked in a bundt pan and most often served with a dollop of homemade whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
- These gingerbread bars are covered in a rich, cream cheese frosting. They are full of gingerbread flavor and make the perfect treat for house guests!
- This eggnog icing recipe takes traditional gingerbread to a whole new level of full flavor.
- These classic gingerbread cookies are so fun to make during the holidays!
Tips for holiday baking:
- Double or triple recipes to make large batches of goodies. This allows cookies and bars to be made in an assembly line fashion and speeds up the process.
- Pick holiday recipes that compliment each other and look good plated together. For example every year I like to make Candy Cane Brownies, Eggnog Cookies, Cranberry and Pistachio Shortbread and Peppermint Dipped Chocolate Cookies for a good variety.
- Participate in a Holiday Baking Exchange! This is a great way to prepare for a season of holiday entertaining.
- Start baking early and store goodies in the freezer until they are needed. I use these large Rubbermaid food storage containers to save a mixture of cookies and bars in my freezer so that I have them ready to go for Christmas parties and gatherings all season long.
These simple gingerbread bars are sure to become a new favorite holiday treat this Christmas season!
If you love this gingerbread bar recipe, please give it a five star review and help me share it on Facebook or Pinterest so that others can enjoy it too!
Gingerbread Bar Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 3/4 cup butter melted
- 3/4 cup white sugar
- 1/2 cup fancy molasses
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 egg
- 1 tub vanilla frosting
- 1 tsp sprinkles
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Using a KitchenAid mixer with paddle attachment or electric mixer with a large bowl, combine dry ingredients.
- Add wet ingredients and mix on medium speed until dough forms.
- Grease a 9 x 9” baking pan with non stick cooking spray or line with parchment paper.
- Spread dough evenly in the prepared pan.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes until the center is firm.
- Move to a wire rack to cool.
- Allow the gingerbread to completely cool before removing from the baking dish.
- Spread frosting evenly over top of the gingerbread.
- Dust with festive sprinkles.
- Cut into 2” bars and serve.
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