These yummy (and easy) gingerbread bars make the perfect holiday dessert and are so incredibly addictive when topped with homemade cream cheese frosting.

Whenever I make these gingerbread cookie bars, I double up on the recipe because they disappear in no time at all–they’re just that good!

This recipe bring together the comforting aromas and flavors of traditional gingerbread cookies with the most amazing cream cheese frosting on top that just melts in your mouth.

Gingerbread Cookie Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting

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Author: Anna Young
Prep Time: 40 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour
Yield: 12 bars 1x
Category: Dessert
Method: Baked
Cuisine: American

Scale

For the bars:

½ cup butter, melted
¾ cup granulated sugar
¼ cup dark brown sugar
½ tsp pure vanilla extract
⅓ cup molasses
1 large egg
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking soda
1 tbsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground ginger
¼ tsp ground nutmeg
¼ tsp ground cloves
½ tsp salt

For the frosting:

6 oz cream cheese softened
3 tbsp butter softened
2 ¼ cups powdered sugar
¾ tsp vanilla
holiday sprinkles optional

Preheat oven to 350°F.
Line a 9×13 pan with parchment paper.
In a medium bowl add the flour, salt, baking soda and spices and mix to combine.
Set aside.
In a large bowl beat together the butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar.
Add the vanilla, molasses and egg and beat to combine.
Add the flour mixture and mix to combine.
Transfer to the prepared pan and smooth with spatula.
Bake in preheated oven for 15-20 minutes.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely.
To make the frosting, in a bowl beat the butter and cream cheese until creamy.
Add the sugar and mix to combine.
Spread the frosting on top of the bars.
Decorate with sprinkles.
Refrigerate unit ready to serve.

Notes

Why Did My Gingerbread Cookie Bars End Up Dry and Hard?

When Gingerbread Cookie Bars are baked for too long, the moisture evaporates and they become dry and crumbly. Try to reduce the baking time by about 1-2 minutes and see if this improves the texture of your cookie bars.

Another reason why your cookie bars may be dry and hard is because you used the wrong type of flour. When baking these Gingerbread Cookie Bars, you should always use bleached all-purpose flour as it will result in a softer cookie. Do not use unbleached all-purpose flour or another type of flour.

How to Fix Grainy or Chunky Cream Cheese Frosting

Cream cheese frosting should be smooth, with no chunks or grains throughout. In case you end up with grainy cream cheese frosting, here are some ways you can fix it:

Sift the sugar as you mix it into the cream cheese and butter mixture. Make sure to add sugar slowly and mix the frosting thoroughly while mixing in the powdered sugar. Do not spoon in large amounts of sugar at a time.

Make sure the butter and cream cheese are both at room temperature. Both cream cheese and butter contain saturated fat, which means they solidify when they are chilled. Make sure both are soft and at room temperature to ensure that they can be mixed well.

Keywords: Gingerbread, Cookie Bars

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