INSIDE: Maximize your time in the kitchen with my 3 tips to simplify cookies — including the versatile recipe for cookie bars that works with all your favorite cookie doughs!
Our entire family loves “goodies” (as 3-year old Simon officially coined all sweet treats several years ago.)
Cookies, bars, cakes, pies, fudge, brownies, ice cream, and more are welcome additions to our menu plan all year long.
Although we don’t always have dessert with every meal, I like to keep a variety of goodies in the freezer for last-minute company, when I bring meals to others, or to surprise the kids with a special after-school snack.
Cookies are definitely the kids’ go-to goodie of choice…
But I rarely feel like making cookies at the last minute because I need to haul out my mixer and all the ingredients, scoop out dozens of individual cookie dough balls, and dutifully rotate cookie sheets every 8 to 12 minutes so the cookies don’t burn.
I suppose the easy (and more calorie-friendly solution) would be to give up cookies… but that would never fly with my family!
Instead, I simplify the cookie-making process!
This means we get to enjoy eating and sharing hundreds of cookies throughout the year in less time and with less mess (and I resent the process less too.)
Sound good?
Then keep reading. 🍪
3 Ways to Simplify Cookies
1. Bake a bunch of cookies at one time and freeze them.
This option is the least messy because you make the dough, bake the cookies, and do all the cleanup at one time.
It’s also really nice to have a selection of already-baked cookies in the freezer, ready to go at a moment’s notice (they defrost in less than 20 minutes).
NOTE: If you have limited freezer space, you should consider that frozen cookies take up more space than frozen cookie dough (they are also more fragile than cookie dough).
2. Freeze balls of cookie dough.
I LOVE having a freezer stuffed full of cookie dough balls!
It’s a little more work upfront because you need to flash-freeze the cookie dough balls (see instructions below), and you’ll eventually have cookie sheets to wash whenever you decide to bake the cookies.
However, cookie dough balls take up much less space in the freezer and they allow us to enjoy the taste of fresh-from-the-oven cookies with very little effort.
I usually make 4 or 5 types of cookie dough in one day, do all the cleanup at one time, and then have a variety of cookie dough balls to choose from for months and months.
It’s so fun to effortlessly surprise the kids with a fresh-from-the-oven cookie after school.
Other times, I simply ask everyone what type of cookie they’d like after dinner, pop a few different varieties on a cookie sheet, and let them bake while we eat (you’ll want to increase baking time by roughly 2 minutes for frozen cookie dough).
QUICK TIP: When freezing cookie dough balls, “flash freeze” them on a cookie sheet before transferring them to a zip-top bag or storage container so they don’t stick to eachother.
3. Make cookie bars instead of individual cookies.
If you love your favorite cookie dough but don’t have the patience to scoop individual cookie balls and rotate cookie sheets every few minutes, try cookie bars instead.
Simply scoop a bunch of cookie dough (roughly 4 to 5 cups) into a 9″ x 13″ pan and pop it in the oven for 20 to 25 minutes.
I can fit SIX 9″ x 13″ pans in my oven at one time, and I get 2 to 3 dozen bars per pan, so this is a fantastic way for me to make a massive number of “goodies” for a fraction of the time and effort!
Cookies bars are SO easy to make — I’d almost say you don’t need a recipe.
In fact, I never use a formal recipe — I just press my favorite cookie dough in whatever pan I want to use, filling the pan roughly 1/3 to 1/2 full of dough (similar to how full the pan is for a batch of brownies).
However, since I know most people want a recipe to follow (especially the first time) I made a point to measure how much cookie dough I use for various pans — along with the time it takes to bake cookie bars in my oven.
If you’re short on time (or if you just don’t have the energy or patience for individual cookies), treat your family to cookie bars instead!
Easy Cookie Bars
Cookie bars are a quick and easy way to bake your favorite cookie dough -- they feed a crowd if you cut them small!
Ingredients
- 3-6 cups of your favorite homemade or store bought cookie dough (see notes below)
- some sort of rimmed baking pan
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350ºF.
- Grease the bottoms and sides of whatever pan you want to use.
- Make or buy your favorite cookie dough (or defrost cookie dough from the freezer)
- Press cookie dough into greased pan, filling roughly 1/3 to 1/2 full.
- Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes (for a 9" x 13" pan), or until the edges are slightly browned.
- Cool completely before cutting into bars.
Notes
The center of the dough will seem giggly when you remove it from the oven -- this is OK, they should set up nicely as your cookie bars cool.
If the center is fully set when you remove the pan from the oven, your cookie bars will most likely be crumbly and dry. If this happens, you can crumble them fully and use this recipe to make cookie crumb truffles (they are AMAZING and perfect for over-baked cookies)
NOTES on Pan Size and amount of dough to use:
- 9 " x 13" pan = 4-5 cups of dough
- 9" x 9" pan = 3-4 cups of dough
- 9" glass pie pan = 3 cups of dough
- Pizza pan = 6+ cups of dough
Keep in mind this all depends on how thick you want your bars, how your oven bakes, and what type of pan you're using.
If you want very thin bars, use less dough and bake for a shorter amount of time.
If you want super thick bars, use more dough and bake longer. You might also want to reduce the baking temp to 325 and cover with foil for the last 10 minutes or so, to prevent browning.
If your oven bakes "slow" or "fast", watch your bars the first few times and adjust the baking time accordingly.
If you use glass pans you'll need to bake the bars for a few minutes longer than if you use non-stick or coated pans.
Personally, I just use my best judgement (I never actually measure the dough). I fill the pans roughly 1/3 to 1/2 full -- similar to what I would do for making brownies. Then I keep an eye on them for the last few minutes of baking time, and I never have any issues!
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Try cookie “cake”, “pie”, and “bread” too!
I usually make my cookie bars in a 9″ x 13″ or 9″ x 9″ pan because I have several pans in those sizes, many of which have tight-fitting lids.
HOWEVER, you can bake cookie dough in ANY size pan.
If you have more dough, use a jellyroll pan and add a few minutes to the baking time.
If you have less dough, bake it in a bread loaf pan (don’t fill more than 1/2 way full otherwise the middle won’t set before the outside browns).
If you want a “cookie cake”, use a cheesecake pan, a round cake pan, a glass pie pan, or even a rimmed pizza pan for a huge “cookie cake” or “cookie pie”.
Dave’s mom has done this for the kids a few times and apparently, eating cookies that are cut into wedges like pizza (with frosting) makes it that much better!
Whatever size pan you use, I’m sure they’ll be a hit!
These 3 cookie-making tips will allow you to regularly treat your family and friends to lots of “goodies” without spending all day in the kitchen scooping individual cookies — that’s a WIN in my book!
Give it a try!
If you need a few cookie dough recipes to test out these 3 cookie tips… keep scrolling!
Our Favorite Cookie Dough Recipes:
All of the recipes below can be made into cookie bars. Store-bought cookie dough also works wonderfully!
- Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Extra Chocolatey Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Cookies
- Funfetti Cake Mix Cookies
- Monster Cookies
- Spiced Molasses Cookies
- Peanut Butter Reese’s Cookies
- Snickerdoodle Cookies
My Favorite “Bar” Recipes:
- Blondie Bars
- Brownie/Cookie Bars
- Easy Layer Bars
- Cereal Bars
- Chocolate Caramel Brownies
- Chocolate Peanut-Butter Cookie Bars
- Chocolate Easy Layer Bars
- Oatmeal Caramel Bars
- Oatmeal M&M Bars
- OREO Blondies
- Pecan Lemon Bars
- Rice Chex Bars
- Scotcharoos
Visit my virtual recipe box for more simple, family-friendly recipes.
Are you hungry yet!?!
Have you ever made cookie bars?
Feel free to share your favorite cookie dough recipe in the comments below (especially if you have a link!)
Courtney says
Thanks for sharing! I’ve been wanting to do this but wasn’t sure how to convert my recipes! Looking forward to stocking up the freezer before the holidays!
Andrea says
yes — it’s so quick and easy to make bars instead of cookies. You’ll be so far ahead of the game this year!
Brenda says
One tip to make the baking seem faster is to use the biggest cookie sheet that will fit in your oven so you can bake more at one time! I have an extra large cookie sheet that I can fit 2 dozen cookies on. I just do 1 pan in the oven at a time so I don’t have to rotate them half way through baking. For most regular sized recipes (not double or triple batches) can be baked in just 2 trayfuls.
Andrea says
yes — good tip (as long as those giant cookie sheets actually fit into your kitchen cabinets!)
Calliope says
I don’t like making cookies either! Lately though I found an easy recipe that my son just loves and I’ve already made it twice.
This is the link to it:
https://akispetretzikis.com/en/categories/mpiskota/soft-cookies
He is my favorite greek chef and the tips he gives for the cookies are really worth it.
Andrea says
Thanks for sharing the link to this recipe!
Ashley says
Reading this post made me realize that I too really dislike making cookies! Some great tips to make it easier. Happy Thanksgiving to your family!
Andrea says
haha — yes! We love cookies (I love cookies) I just don’t love the process. I’d so much rather make a pan of bars or a cake!
Have a good holiday weekend,
Cait says
Wow – why have i never thought of bars instead of drop cookies?! Definitely doing that this year as I’m in the same boat as you – I run out of steam half-way through baking batch after batch of cookies.
Our favorite cookie bar recipe is either oatmeal chocolate chip or these blondies that I discovered in a magazine years ago.
https://www.marthastewart.com/336484/blondies-with-chocolate-chips-and-walnut
Happy (stress-free) baking! 🙂
Andrea says
Yum! Thanks for sharing the recipe, Cait! we also LOOOOVE blondie bars!
JJ says
That’s a great idea to press the cookie dough for bars!!! We just made your sugar cookies(which is our go-to and only recipe several times a year!) for Thanksgiving. We found cute Thanksgiving cookie cutters on Amazon. They turned out soooo good!!! For brownies or cookies that get too crisp, putting them in a plastic ziptop bag with a piece of bread softens them(waiting overnight helps!). If they are thin, they will still crumble but be soft. Thick cookies will be soft and perfecy. It also keeps cookies soft when mailing them. Out youth group sent cookies that way, and I was so confused about the piece of bread in my bag with the cookies. Haha! I thought it was a joke. Then my friend from church explained.
Andrea says
Sugar cookies are still on my list… but I’ll get to them eventually!
Thanks for sharing your tips (I did know about the bread tip, but glad to have it shared on this post)
Nancy says
I roll the dough into a log, wrap, and chill or freeze. Then I t’s simple to cut slices for baking. If there are candy pieces in the dough they will get damaged, but I use this method for monster cookies anyway because I so dislike rolling the dough into balls.
Ashley says
I love this idea!!
Bridget Schober says
I do this too! I usually make one pan of cookies fresh when I mix dough and then put the rest in a log roll in Saran Wrap. I can bake just the number I want and have fresh from the oven with no work.
Andrea says
yes, some fresh, some for later — love it!
Andrea says
Great idea — I guess I don’t mind rolling the balls (I use a cookie scoop so I don’t actually have to touch the dough with my hands).
Thanks for sharing!
J says
Thanks Andrea, for taking the time and putting your favorite bar recipes in one place, so that it will make it easier for everyone else, when there’s a potluck to go to! Now I’m going to invest in getting some nice cookie bar pans with covers, prob nw, so I’ll be all set the next time I’m invited to a potluck.
Could you please put together a list like this for what you make, when you have a crowd. I’m talking about the casserole dishes, salads, the meats to cook:)
Have a great day and weekend coming up with your family!
Andrea says
you’re welcome for the bar recipes! 🙂
As for the other potluck recipes, I have some compile this this post… and several more in this post!
Margaret says
I do this too, especially if I’m in a hurry. I actually bought a 10×15 pan just for this purpose, as the Toll House cookie recipe on the choc chip package calls for this size.
A tip I found online–don’t remember where–suggested wetting your hands before patting the dough out to help keep the dough from sticking to your hands. It really helps speed up the process and reduces wasted dough.
Andrea says
yes, I also use a small piece of wax paper to press the dough down — it doesn’t stick to that either!
Annette Silveira says
Well, this post is dangerous to my sweet-loving soul!
Dawn says
I second that! Yummmmmm!!!
Andrea says
🙂
Andrea says
haha — you can always cut your bars REALLY small (and then eat 2 or 3!)