Is there anything better during the holiday than a good gingerbread cookie recipe? For many of us, gingerbread is one of the most recognizable flavors of the holidays. As weird as it may sound, I didn’t have a gingerbread cookie until I was an adult. Even weirder, I have never made a gingerbread cookie house, which I know was a tradition for all the kids in my husband’s family. My mother wasn’t a fan of these traditional cookies and never made them, preferring to make some of my grandmother’s favorite cookies from her childhood.
My first time having a more traditional gingerbread cookie was when we lived in New Jersey. I had tried the cheap cookies you can get in stores, but I couldn’t understand why anyone would even want to eat gingerbread after having one of those hard, overly-sweet cookies. Once I had a traditional soft gingerbread cookie, though, I was hooked! I immediately wasn’t going to learn how to make these cookies, so I have been slowly experimenting with recipes for years.
While looking for a good hard and soft cookie to add to my holiday repertoire, I came across an interesting treat last year at one of our local grocery stores—gingerbread bars! I honestly had no clue what to expect, but I knew my husband would at least love them since they had cream cheese icing. Even though it was a bit too sweet for me, my husband loved it and was hopeful we could make an even better, more natural version at home.
Surprisingly, this seemed a relatively new take on this traditional recipe. I couldn’t find a recipe online that wasn’t just a generic recipe that added gingerbread flavoring or syrup. To me, this just sounded gross. I wasn’t to find something flavorful and not too hard, making it the perfect gingerbread cookie recipe, at least in my eyes.
After experimenting and discussing it with some of my other favorite foodies, I finally found and modified what I considered the best gingerbread cookie bar recipe out there! This recipe is that perfect mix of sweetness and texture, creating a cookie you will happily share with family and friends. Don’t be surprised if you make this recipe throughout the holiday season.
Do you have a gingerbread cookie recipe that everyone in your family enjoys? If so, please tell us in the comment below, as we are still looking for that perfect recipe!
Gingerbread Cookie Bar Recipe
A delicious and creamy trade on the traditional gingerbread cookie with the right amount of spice and creamy frosting that is sure to be a new holiday tradition.
- Prep Time: 20 Min
- Cook Time: 25 Min + 1 hour cool time
- Total Time: 1 hour 45 minutes
- Yield: 15 Servings 1x
Ingredients
Cookie Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon cloves
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup granulated white sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/3 cup unsulphured molasses
Cream Cheese Frosting Ingredients:
8-ounce bar of cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 cups powdered sugar
1–2 tablespoons milk, needed only if the frosting is too dry
Instructions
Directions for Cookie Bars:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Line a 9×13 baking dish/pan with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Add the flour, ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, allspice, and baking soda to a medium mixing bowl and whisk to combine. Set aside.
- Add the butter, white sugar, and brown sugar to a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer until fully combined.
- Add the egg, vanilla, and molasses to the mixing bowl and beat until well combined scraping down the sides of the bowl periodically with a rubber spatula to ensure all the butter and sugar are fully incorporated.
- Add the dry ingredients to the mixing bowl and mix until a soft dough is formed.
- Turn the dough out into the prepared 9×13 baking dish and use your hands to press it out evenly into all sides of the baking dish.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with only moist crumbs on it.
- Use the parchment paper to lift the cookie bars out of the baking dish and place them on a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
Directions for Frosting:
- Add the butter, vanilla, and cream cheese to a large mixing bowl and beat until creamy.
- Add the powdered sugar and mix until smooth and creamy.
- Add the milk only if the frosting seems too dry.
- Spread the frosting evenly on the cooled cookie bars.
- Cut the bars into 15 equal squares.
- Store any leftovers in the refrigerator.
Would you like to see more yummy recipes like this one? Check out our other recipes here!
About Susan Bewley
Susan Bewley is a professional writer who has been writing content online & in print format for over 10 years. As well, she is an alumni of the University of Louisville with a Masters Degree in Special Education. When not working as an online business consultant or ghost writing, she can be found writing on Budget Earth, on her own novel, or working with various entities in the pet industry.
