Soft and flavorful cookie bars filled with warm and cozy chai spice blend, topped with a thick layer of vanilla-chai frosting.
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What sets this recipe apart
Blondie-cookie hybrid: These bars taste like a combination of chewy blondie and soft sugar cookie bar.
Chai spices: The warm and cozy combination of chai spices elevates this recipe.
Frosting: A thick layer of vanilla-chai buttercream is the perfect finishing touch!
Visual recipe overview
*Full recipe below in recipe card*
Cookie dough
Make the chai-spiced cookie dough. Press into pan and bake.
Frosting
Combine butter, powdered sugar, milk, vanilla, and spice mix.
Assemble
After the bars have cooled, top with frosting.
Chai spice blend
Chai is traditionally a spiced tea made with black tea, milk, sweetener, and a blend of spices. The exact combination of spices can vary, but cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, and cloves are commonly used.
For these cookie bars, I use those same warm spices (no tea) to flavor a buttery cookie dough. Think of it as an elevated snickerdoodle.
You can buy a chai spice blend or you can make your own with the following combination of spices:
- Cinnamon
- Ginger
- Cardamom
- Allspice
- Cloves
The exact proportions are in the recipe card. Leftover chai spice? Make this chai crumb cake.
Tips: Getting the perfect texture
These bars have a fantastic soft and chewy texture that you can really sink your teeth into. Several things help develop the ideal texture:
Brown sugar: For moisture and sweetness
An extra egg yolk: For chewiness and richness
Sour cream or yogurt: For tenderness
Don’t overbake: These bars should be removed from the oven as soon as the center bakes through. They will firm up as they cool.
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Recipe
Frosted Chai Cookie Bars
Ingredients
Bars:
- ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
- ⅔ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup light brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons sour cream or plain yogurt
- 1½ cups Bob’s Red Mill White All-Purpose Flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 4 teaspoons chai spice mix, see note
Frosting:
- ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons half and half or cream
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons chai spice mix, see note
Optional topping:
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar or coarse sugar
- ½ teaspoon chai spice mix, see note
Instructions
Bars:
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9×9 baking pan (preferably metal). You can also line the baking pan with foil, leaving a couple inches of overhang on two sides (this will allow you to easily lift the whole pan of bars out of the pan). Spray or grease the foil.
- Using a hand mixer or stand mixer, beat butter and both sugars on medium speed for several minutes, until light and fluffy. Add egg, egg yolk, vanilla, and sour cream and beat until combined, scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary.
- In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, salt, and 4 teaspoons chai spice.
- With the mixer on low, slowly add the the dry ingredients to the wet and mix until just combined (do not over-mix). Spread the dough into an even layer in the prepared pan (it will be thick). If necessary you can moisten your fingertips with water to press it into an even layer.
- Bake for 20-23 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean and the center no longer jiggles. Be careful not to overbake, it will firm up as it cools. Cool completely on a wire rack.
Frosting:
- With a hand mixer or stand mixer, beat butter and powdered sugar for 1-2 minutes, until light and creamy. Add half and half, vanilla extract, and 2 teaspoons chai spice. Beat until completely combined, scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary. Spread the frosting on top of the cooled bars. If desired, combine the topping ingredients and sprinkle over the frosted bars.
Notes
Chai spice mix
Combine the following:- 3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 3 teaspoons ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1 teaspoon ground allspice
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
Nutrition
Nutritional Information is an estimate based on third-party calculations and may vary based on products used and serving sizes.
Tried this recipe?Leave a comment and rating below!
Ashley says
These look and sound amazing!! I love chai but never thought to put it in a dessert!
xo Ashley
Crystal // Dreams, etc. says
I’m going to have to try these out soon! They sound so good!
anne @onedeterminedlife says
These look amazing!
ellie says
Chai Spiced anything is one of my favourite treats so I am stoked to try out this recipe! These look so delicious! perfect for a rainy evening in with Netflix!
Ellie
Meghan says
Oh my god I absolutely LOVE cookie bars! Need to try this!
Matt says
Have made these two times and I really like them. The chai frosting alone puts a smile on my face. Do not over bake the bars… they will get too dry very quickly. If you can keep the bars moist, these are really yummy.
Celebrating Sweets says
I’m so glad that you liked these, Matt. Yes, overbaking will ruin them. Thanks for stopping by!
Amit Shroff says
Amazing Recipe.
If you are from India, buy Bobs Red Mill from India.
Sean says
Would it be ok to use an 8 x 8 tin? Any changes?
Celebrating Sweets says
You’ll definitely need to increase the bake time, and they’ll be thicker than those pictured. I’d add 5 minutes and then check every few minutes until they’re done. Enjoy!
Sean says
How should these be stored and how long do they keep?
Celebrating Sweets says
I find that they’re best within 2 days stored at room temp. You should be able to freeze them if you need them to last longer. Enjoy!
Sharon says
Hi, can you make the frosting without adding the cream
Allison says
You’ll need some type of liquid in place of the cream. You can use non-dairy milk, regular milk, or half and half.