Easter Egg Sugar Cookie Bars

These Easter Egg Sugar Cookie Bars are a springtime sensation that will brighten up any holiday gathering! With their buttery, soft-baked texture, pretty pastel frosting, and adorable mini egg decorations, they’re practically guaranteed to disappear from your dessert table in record time.

I’ve brought these to countless Easter celebrations, and they never fail to bring smiles all around, especially from the little ones who can’t resist those colorful chocolate eggs on top! The best part? They’re so much easier than rolling and cutting individual cookies, making them perfect for busy holiday preparations.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• Time-Saving Simplicity: All the flavor of sugar cookies without the fuss of rolling, cutting, and decorating individual cookies.
• Perfectly Portable: These bars travel beautifully to Easter gatherings, potlucks, or spring celebrations.
• Customizable Canvas: The pastel frosting palette can be adjusted to match any spring color scheme you prefer.
• Kid-Friendly Fun: Little helpers will love decorating these bars with sprinkles and arranging the chocolate eggs.

Ingredients

For the Sugar Cookie Bars

• Unsalted butter: Creates that rich, buttery flavor that makes sugar cookies irresistible.
• Granulated sugar: Provides the perfect sweetness and helps create that tender crumb.
• Egg: Binds everything together and adds moisture to the dough.
• Vanilla extract: Enhances all the flavors with its warm, aromatic notes.
• All-purpose flour: The foundation that gives our bars structure and that classic sugar cookie texture.
• Baking powder: Provides just enough lift without making them cakey.
• Salt: Balances the sweetness and enhances all the other flavors.

For the Frosting

• Powdered sugar: Creates that smooth, sweet frosting that melts in your mouth.
• Unsalted butter: Adds richness and helps the frosting hold its shape.
• Milk: Thins the frosting to the perfect spreadable consistency.
• Vanilla extract: Rounds out the flavor with its warm, aromatic notes.
• Food coloring: Transforms plain frosting into a spring-worthy pastel palette.

For Decoration

• Mini chocolate eggs: These adorable candies are the star of our Easter-themed decoration.
• Pastel-colored sprinkles: Add that festive touch that makes these bars extra special.

Note: The exact measurements for all ingredients will be available in the recipe card below the article.

How to Make the Easter Egg Sugar Cookie Bars

Step 1: Prep Your Space

Start by preheating your oven to 350°F and lining your baking pan with parchment paper. This might seem like a small detail, but that parchment paper is your best friend it’ll make removing and cutting these bars so much easier later!

Step 2: Create the Cookie Base

In a large bowl, beat together that softened butter and sugar until it’s light and fluffy. This step is crucial for creating that perfect texture, so don’t rush it! Once it’s nice and creamy, mix in the egg and vanilla until everything is well combined. You’ll start to see your dough taking on that classic sugar cookie look.

Step 3: Add the Dry Ingredients

In a separate bowl, whisk together your flour, baking powder, and salt. This ensures everything is evenly distributed before it hits your wet ingredients. Gradually add this dry mixture to your butter mixture, mixing just until a soft dough forms. Be careful not to overmix here we want tender, not tough, cookie bars!

Step 4: Press and Bake

Press that gorgeous dough evenly into your prepared pan. I find using slightly damp hands helps prevent sticking and creates a smooth surface. Pop it into your preheated oven and bake for 18-22 minutes, just until the edges turn a light golden color. The center might look slightly underdone, but that’s perfect it’ll continue cooking a bit as it cools and give you that soft-baked texture we’re after.

Step 5: Cool Completely

This is where patience comes in! Let those cookie bars cool completely before moving on to the frosting stage. Rushing this step could lead to melted frosting, and nobody wants that mess!

Step 6: Whip Up the Frosting

Beat together the powdered sugar, softened butter, milk, and vanilla until you’ve got a smooth, creamy frosting. Then comes the fun part divide it into separate bowls and add a few drops of food coloring to each to create your pastel palette. Think soft pinks, baby blues, lavender, or pale yellow perfect spring colors!

Step 7: Frost and Decorate

Spread your colored frostings over the cooled cookie bars. You can create stripes, a checkerboard pattern, or even a marbled effect if you’re feeling creative! While the frosting is still soft, arrange those adorable mini chocolate eggs in little clusters to resemble nests, and sprinkle with your pastel sprinkles for that extra festive touch.

Step 8: Slice and Serve

Once your masterpiece is complete, use a sharp knife to cut into squares or rectangles. For the cleanest cuts, wipe your knife between slices. Then stand back and watch as everyone gravitates toward these pretty treats!

Pro Tips for Making the Recipe

• Room Temperature Ingredients: Make sure your butter and egg are at room temperature for the smoothest dough and frosting.
• Don’t Overbake: These bars should be soft in the center when you take them out the edges will just be starting to turn golden.
• Frosting Consistency: If your frosting is too thick, add a few drops of milk. If it’s too thin, add a bit more powdered sugar.
• Cutting Clean Bars: Refrigerate the frosted bars for about 30 minutes before cutting for the neatest edges.

How to Serve

These versatile bars are perfect for:

• Easter dessert tables alongside other spring treats
• School or church holiday celebrations
• Spring baby or bridal showers
• Packaging in clear gift bags tied with pastel ribbon as sweet Easter gifts

Make Ahead and Storage

Make Ahead

The unfrosted cookie base can be made 1-2 days ahead and stored, tightly wrapped, at room temperature. Frost and decorate the day you plan to serve for the freshest appearance.

Storing Leftovers

Keep these bars in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-4 days. The bars will stay soft, though the sprinkles may begin to bleed colors into the frosting after a day or so.

Freezing

You can freeze the unfrosted cookie base for up to 3 months. Thaw completely before frosting and decorating.

FAQs

Can I use salted butter instead of unsalted?
Yes, but omit the additional salt in the recipe to prevent the bars from becoming too salty.

How can I make these gluten-free?
Simply substitute the all-purpose flour with a 1:1 gluten-free baking flour blend. The texture may be slightly different, but they’ll still be delicious!

Can I make these ahead for a party?
Absolutely! The cookie base can be made 1-2 days ahead. For the freshest presentation, frost and decorate them the day of your event.

What other decorations work well for these bars?
Get creative! Pastel M&Ms, spring-themed sugar decorations, or even edible flower decorations would all be beautiful alternatives to the mini eggs.

Conclusion

These Easter Egg Sugar Cookie Bars bring together everything we love about spring celebrations ease, color, and of course, deliciousness! They capture all the joy of traditional decorated sugar cookies but in a form that’s so much simpler to prepare and serve.

The buttery, vanilla-scented base provides the perfect canvas for those cheerful pastel frostings and playful Easter decorations. Whether you’re hosting a grand Easter gathering or just want to bring a touch of spring sweetness to an ordinary day, these bars are guaranteed to delight everyone from the youngest egg hunters to the most sophisticated dessert connoisseurs. So grab your mixing bowl, round up your pastel food colors, and get ready to create a treat that’s as fun to make as it is to eat!