Transform easy Sugar Cookie Bars into a fun unicorn dessert with colorful vanilla frosting and lots of rainbow sprinkles. Unicorn Sugar Cookie Bars are so easy to make because you bake and frost them in one pan. Such a fun treat to make for picnics, parties, or holidays.
Sugar Cookie Bars with Frosting
These frosted sugar cookie bars make me smile so much! After I made this fun colored Unicorn Cheesecake, I was inspired to use the leftover sprinkles in a vanilla unicorn dessert.
Baking and frosting sugar cookie bars in one pan is one of my favorite types of dessert. It seriously saves so much time. No more rolling dough out, cutting cookies, and placing each one on a baking sheet.
The box of cookie cutters in our pantry hasn't been used in quite some time because all I make are cookies in a pan now. I'm still holding on to them just in case I get that urge to roll out dough. So far that urge hasn't happened!
What You'll Need:
These unicorn sugar cookies are one of the easiest desserts you will ever make. In fact, you probably have all the ingredients in your pantry to make a unicorn bar right now.
- Butter - softened butter is the key to mixing the dough together easily
- Sugar - granulated and brown sugar sweeten the dough and give a little bit of caramel flavor
- Egg - the moisture from the egg helps bind the ingredients together
- Vanilla - adds flavor
- Flour - gives structure to the dough
- Baking Powder - adds just a little bit of lift to the bars
- Salt - balances out the sweetness in the cookie bars
For these loaded sugar cookie bars I wanted to incorporate as much color as I could. I started with a sweet vanilla sugar cookie and then added a layer of frosting and sprinkles. The end result is soft and chewy sugar cookie bars that will make everyone smile.
How to make Unicorn Sugar Cookie Bars:
Step One: Make the Dough.
- Beat the butter and sugars until light and creamy.
- Mix in the egg and vanilla.
- Slowly mix in the dry ingredients until a soft dough forms. If you are using a hand mixer, this WILL take longer.
Step Two: Bake the Cookie Bars.
- Press the sugar cookie dough evenly in the bottom of a greased pan.
- Bake and cool.
Step Three: Decorate the Sugar Cookie Bars.
- Divide the vanilla frosting into 4 bowls. Use gel food colors to tint the frosting into the colors you want.
- Drop the frosting by spoonfuls onto the cooled cookie bars.
- Use an angled spatula to gently spread the frosting out. Do NOT over swirl or the frosting will turn gray.
- Add lots of colorful and glittery sprinkles to the top right away.
BRUCREW TIP: I love using gel food colors because they do not make your frosting runny, and they are very vibrant.
These sugar cookie bars made me so happy as I was cutting them into squares! Something about bright colors just makes me smile!!!
If you love colorful desserts as much as I do, then you need to see this this Rainbow Cheesecake. The swirls of color are so fun! This Rainbow Cereal Cake is another fun dessert with colorful layers. It is no bake and so easy. And this Rainbow Cheesecake Dip would be so fun to dip all the cookies in. Bring on all the colors!!!
Recipe Questions:
How do you make unicorn sprinkles?
Mix together a variety of jimmies, sprinkles, candy pearls, and sanding sugars in different colors.
How do you store sugar cookie bars?
Keep the sugar cookie bars in a tightly sealed container on the counter for 4-5 days.
Can you freeze frosted sugar cookie bars?
Yes you can freeze frosted cookies. Place the uncut cookies in a tightly sealed freezer container and freeze for 2-3 months. Thaw the cookie bars in the container at room temperature for a few hours before serving.
Can you use store bought cookie dough?
Sure you can save time by baking a roll of refrigerated cookie dough according to the package directions. Add the frosting and sprinkles after the cookies cool.
Other sugar cookie bars recipe:
- Lemon Sugar Cookie Bars
- Chocolate Mint Squares
- Salted Caramel Chocolate Cookie Bars
- S'mores Cookie Bars with marshmallows
- Neapolitan Bars
- Funfetti Sugar Cookies
More easy bar recipes:
- Chocolate Chip Brownies
- Best Lemon Bars
- Take 5 Candy Bar
- Blonde Brownies (with M&Ms)
- Congo Bars
- Marshmallow Oreo Brownie
Recipe
Unicorn Sugar Cookie Bars Recipe
Transform these easy Sugar Cookie Bars into a fun unicorn dessert with colorful vanilla frosting and lots of rainbow sprinkles. These Unicorn Sugar Cookie Bars are so easy to make because you can bake and frost them in one pan. Such a fun treat to make for picnics, parties, or holidays.
Ingredients
For the Cookie Bars
- ½ cup unsalted butter
- ½ cup packed brown sugar
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 ½ cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
For the Frosting
- ½ cup unsalted butter
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 3 ½ cups powdered sugar
- ¼ cup heavy whipping cream
- gel frosting colors
- sprinkles
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a 9x13 pan with foil and spray it with nonstick spray. (foil is optional)
- Beat the butter and sugars until creamy. Add the egg and vanilla and beat again.
- Stir together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Slowly add the flour mixture into the butter mixture.
- Press the dough firmly and evenly in the bottom of the prepared pan. Bake for 14 minutes. Remove and let cool completely.
- Beat the butter, vanilla, and salt until creamy. Slowly add the powdered sugar and heavy whipping cream until everything is mixed in. Beat the frosting on high for at least 2 minutes or until light and fluffy.
- Divide the frosting into 4 bowls. Tint the frosting with the gel colors in the colors you desire.
- Drop spoonfuls of the frosting all over the cookie bars. Use an angled spatula to gently swirl the colors together. Do not over swirl.
- Cover the entire top of the frosting with sprinkles. Cut into 24 bars.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 24 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 229Total Fat: 9gSaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 31mgSodium: 96mgCarbohydrates: 35gFiber: 0gSugar: 25gProtein: 2g
Nutrition facts are an estimate and are not guaranteed to be accurate. If you need special diet advice, please see a registered dietician.
*The post for Vanilla Unicorn Sugar Cookie Bars was first published March 3, 2017. The post was updated and republished April 9, 2021.
Ruti
Why would you put away those cookie cutters? I make these bars - which are absolutely delicious - and then, rather than cutting them into bars, I stamp out shapes with cookie cutters. They come out perfectly shaped 🙂 Sometimes I drizzle the whole cake with chocolate first, before stamping out the shapes, so they look fancier. I'm not such a fan of frosting, lol
Charlotte
I was wondering if it'll be the same if i used store bought cookie dough?
Jocelyn
It will be totally fine to take that shortcut. Just make sure you follow the baking instructions for whichever cookie dough you choose.
Robin
Does the icing harden?
Jocelyn
The top with get a slight "crust" on it, but no the icing isn't hard.
Annaliese
this did not work for me
Jocelyn
What didn't work? I have baked these many times and had lots of others bake them with great results.
Sara Strunk
I’ve made these twice and both times the consistency of the dough has been like a fine sand. Is this correct?
Jocelyn
The dough should be just like sugar cookie dough. Mine has never been like sand. Did you bake them? How did they bake and taste?
Trish
These are great! I'm assuming they need to be refrigerated do the icing. Is that correct?
Jocelyn
No, they can sit out on the counter in a tightly sealed container.
Susie
Where did you get all of these sprinkles? They absolutely perfect for this dish. The colors are amazing!
Jocelyn
I just mixed together a bunch of different colors that I had in my pantry. Most of them probably came from Walmart, Michaels, or Hobby Lobby.