Description
Santa’s Trash Cookie Bars are the ultimate Christmas dessert bar: chewy, buttery, colorful, and packed with sweet-salty crunch in every bite. This easy recipe is perfect for holiday baking, Christmas cookie trays, party food ideas, festive dessert ideas, and make-ahead treats when you need something fun, quick, and crowd-friendly.
Ingredients
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup white chocolate chips
1 cup crushed pretzels
1 cup red and green chocolate candies
1/4 cup holiday sprinkles
Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a 9×13-inch baking pan with parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl, beat the softened butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until creamy.
3. Add the eggs one at a time, then mix in the vanilla extract until smooth.
4. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt.
5. Add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture and mix just until a soft dough forms.
6. Fold in the chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, crushed pretzels, and most of the candies.
7. Press the dough evenly into the prepared pan and top with the remaining candies, extra pretzels, and sprinkles.
8. Bake for 24 to 28 minutes, or until the edges are golden and the center is set but still soft.
9. Cool completely in the pan before lifting out and slicing into bars.
Notes
Do not overbake the bars. Pull them from the oven when the center still looks slightly soft, because they will continue to set as they cool.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 26 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 bar
- Calories: 235
- Sugar: 22g
- Sodium: 170mg
- Fat: 11g
- Saturated Fat: 7g
- Unsaturated Fat: 4g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 33g
- Fiber: 1g
- Protein: 3g
- Cholesterol: 35mg
Keywords: Santa's Trash Cookie Bars, Christmas cookie bars, holiday dessert bars, easy Christmas dessert, cookie tray dessert, sweet and salty bars