Easter Cookie Bars

Create 6 different Easter cookie flavors in one batch! My Easter Cookie Bars bake up in the same sheet pan for the most delicious cookie bars perfect for a spring celebration.

Easy Dessert for Easter Brunch

My Easter Cookie Bars use one pan to make six different and delicious cookies that feed an army are sure to be a hit at Easter brunch! One recipe makes 54 cookie bars, so they can even go back for seconds. Bake all six or choose your favorites:

• M&M Bunnies
• Carrot Cake
• Strawberry White Chocolate
• Peeps Marshmallow Crunch
• Cadbury Mini Eggs
• Lemon Sugar

So Easy, Such a Hit

I’ve been making six-in-one sheet pan cookie bars for years because of how convenient they are. I’ve adapted the recipe to make Halloween cookie bars and Christmas cookie bars. It’s the ultimate in ease and yumminess.

The idea is to make one easy, delicious cookie dough base. Then simply divide that dough between six smaller bowls (cereal bowls work great!), and add your pre-measured mix ins. Each flavor bakes up so perfectly delicious. Crisp on the outside while super chewy inside.

Did I mention you can have them made and out of the oven in about 30 minutes? You can’t beat that!

Ingredients and Supplies

(see recipe card at the bottom of this post for measurements and details. To learn more about specific baking ingredients and how they function in baking recipes, reference my Complete Guide to Baking Ingredients)

For the Cookie Dough Base:

• Unsalted butter: provides moisture, and richness. It also helps create tenderness and contributes to the chewy texture. If you use salted butter, you might consider using less salt in the recipe as it will affect the sweetness of the cookie.
• Granulated sugar: sweetens, but also contributes to the crispness on top of the cookie bars.
• Large eggs: helps bind all the ingredients, add moisture, and help with structure
• Pure vanilla extract: flavor enhancer that helps balance the sweetness and rounds out flavors.
• All-purpose flour: provides structure and body to the cookie bars.
• Baking soda: the leavening agent that helps the cookie bars rise a bit.
• Kosher salt: balances the sweetness and enhances the overall flavor. Table salt will actually pack a saltier punch than Kosher salt so if you only have table salt, adjust accordingly.

M&M’s Bunnies:

• Pastel blend M&M’s
• Easter-themed sprinkles

Carrot Cake:

• Finely shredded carrots
• Chopped walnuts
• Ground cinnamon
• Ground nutmeg
• Cream cheese frosting
• Carrot-shaped candies

Strawberry White Chocolate:

• Freeze-dried strawberries (chopped)
• White chocolate chips

Peeps Marshmallow Crunch:

• Peeps Marshmallow Bunnies
• Rice Krispies cereal

Cadbury Mini Eggs:

• Cadbury Mini Eggs

Lemon Sugar:

• Lemon zest
• Fresh lemon juice
• Powdered sugar

Supplies:

• 17×12-inch sheet pan
• Nonstick cooking spray
• Electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment
• Mixing bowls
• Mixing spoons or spatulas

How to Make Easter Cookie Bars

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a 17x 12-inch sheet pan with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar until well combined. Beat in the eggs and vanilla.
• With the mixer on low speed, beat in the flour, baking soda, and salt until combined.
• Divide the dough evenly into 6 different bowls with about 3/4 cup of dough per bowl. Place the ingredients for each flavor in each of the bowls with the dough and stir to combine well.
• Place each ball of mixed cookie dough into a sixth of the prepared sheet pan.
• Press the cookie doughs down evenly, with your hands, to fill the sixth of the sheet pan that each cookie dough is in. Each cookie dough should be pressed up next to the other cookie doughs that are beside it to fill the entire sheet pan.
• Bake for about 15-20 minutes or until golden brown on top and a toothpick inserted in the center of the cookie bars comes out clean. Try not to over-bake them if you want them to be chewy.

• Once the cookie bars are baked, immediately press 4 Peeps Marshmallow Bunnies onto the Peeps section and the remaining Cadbury Mini Eggs into the Cadbury Mini Eggs section. Decorate the top of the M&M’s Bunnies section with M&M’s pressed in to look like little bunnies, laying one flat for the face and two sideways on the top of the flat one for the bunny ears.

• Let the bars cool completely and then frost the Carrot Cake section with dollops of cream cheese frosting and top each dollop with a carrot shaped candy décor. Sprinkle the Strawberry White Chocolate section with extra chopped freeze-dried strawberries. Dust the Lemon Sugar section with powdered sugar and sprinkle with fresh lemon zest.

• Cut into squares to serve.

Storage

Store cookie bars in an air-tight container, with parchment paper between each layer, at room temperature for 2 days, or in the refrigerator for 5 days.

To freeze, let the cookie bars cool completely, wrap cookie bars individually in plastic wrap, and then put in a freezer-safe container or in individual freezer-safe baggies. 

To defrost, let them set at room temperature, uncovered, so they don’t absorb too much moisture.

If you make my Easter Cookie Bars, be sure to snap a picture and share it with me  @thebakermama on Instagram so I can see. If you’re on Facebook, be sure to join my Friends of The BakerMama group to connect and share all the fun and yummy recipes of mine that you make! 😍 I just love seeing how inspired and creative y’all get with the ideas I share. Enjoy!

xoxo,

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