Undemanding Recipes for
Delectable Bar Cookies

Most recipes for bar cookies are neither tool demanding nor time consuming. We can easily mix the batter with a spoon, layer it into a shallow pan, and bake.

Serving these luscious cookies is just as simple as baking them. We can cut them into squares, narrow rectangles, wedges, or any shapes and sizes that we may fancy.

The quickest and easiest way to cut bar cookies is with a bench scraper or baker’s bench knife. If bars are sticky and moist, wet the blade with water or spray it with non-stick vegetable oil spray. Wipe off the blade after each cutting to remove any clinging crumbs.


To minimize sticking, line baking pan with parchment paper. After baking, slide a baker’s bench knife along the edge of the pan to loosen cookie bars before cutting.

When I need to line a baking pan with aluminum foil, I would use a piece of foil that is more than enough to line the inside of the pan. The extra foil makes it easy for me to lift the entire cookie bars out of the pan in one shot.

Cookie bars can be stored in their own baking pan, tightly covered with foil or plastic wrap. They will remain fresh at room temperature for 3 or 4 days. When carefully wrapped and well frozen, they can keep for up to a month.

Most simple and unglazed bar cookies also travel extremely well. They make great gifts for long distant relatives or friends.

The following suggestions have led me through many bar cookie baking experiences with ease.

• Reading the entire recipe including the list of ingredients before starting.

• Using the best possible quality ingredients and measuring them carefully.

• Spreading batter or dough evenly in the prepared pan. I find that it is much easier to smooth the batter and push it to four corners of the baking pan with my wet fingers. Whatever little water I happen to drip on top of the batter will quickly evaporate in the oven.

• Using a pan of the size specified in cookie recipes. If I absolutely must use a different sized pan, I would substitute one of almost equal in square inches. For example, a 7 x 12 inch pan (84 square inches) for a 9 x 9 inch pan (81 square inches).

• Overbaking is not a good practice, especially with brownies.

• Selecting one of the following recipes:
  1. Applesauce Brownies
  2. Banana Nut Bars
  3. Banana Sour Cream Squares
  4. Blondies! - One Step to Congo
  5. Carrot Zucchini Bars
  6. Cheesecake Brownies
  7. Chocolate Chip Bars
  8. Chocolate Chip Zucchini Brownies
  9. Coconut Bars
  10. Congo Bars - One Step from Blondies
  11. Cream Cheese Blondies
  12. Cream Cheese Brownies
  13. Granola Bars with Apricot and Walnuts
  14. Chocolate Granola Squares from a microwave
  15. Healthy Bars from a quick recipe
  16. Lemon Dreams
  17. No bake Nanaimo Bars
  18. Oat Bars with Dates
  19. Oatmeal Bars with Chocolate Chips
  20. Peanut Butter Bars - Low-Fat, Gluten-Free
  21. Pecan Meringue Squares
  22. Plentiful Peanut Bars
  23. Rum Raisin Bars
  24. Spiced Apple Bars
  25. Spiced Pumpkin Bars

This is a chance to make your well-thought opinion known.:-)