Cookie Dough Bars

Close-up of a stacked no-bake cookie dough bar with chocolate chips, M&M's, and chocolate topping.

5 from 1 vote

These delicious homemade cookie dough bars are a colorful and yummy treat. A buttery batter is mixed with mini chocolate chips and M&M's with a melted chocolate topping for a rich, irresistible dessert!

Prep Time25

Chill Time3

Total Time3 25

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Cookie Dough Bars, Cookie Dough Bars Recipe

Servings:

Calories: 443kcal

Ingredients

Cookie Dough

2 cups all-purpose flour, heat treated
½ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
¾ cup light brown sugar, packed
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
14 ounces sweetened condensed milk
¾ cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
½ cup mini m&m’s

Topping

6 ounces semi-sweet baking bar, finely chopped
½ cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
½ cup mini m&m’s

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a medium rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
Spread out the all-purpose flour into an even layer on the prepared baking sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes, being sure not to allow the flour to brown. Remove from the oven and cool for 10-15 minutes or until it’s no longer warm to the touch before adding to the cookie dough.
Line an 8x8 straight-sided baking pan with parchment paper and set aside. Be sure to allow enough parchment to hang over the sides of the pan to ensure easy lifting to remove the bars from the pan once fully chilled.
In a large mixing bowl beat on medium speed, using a handheld mixer, the butter and brown sugar for 2-3 minutes or until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla and beat again just until combined.
With the mixer on low, slowly add the flour to the bowl. Once all the flour has been added the mixture will resemble coarse sand with a few small lumps. This is ok. When the sweetened condensed milk is mixed in, the texture will then resemble raw cookie dough.
Add the sweetened condensed milk to the bowl and mix on low until all the ingredients are fully combined and no dry pockets of flour remain.
Carefully fold in the mini chocolate chips and mini m&m’s, being sure not to break apart the mini m&m’s too much, until they are evenly distributed throughout the batter.
Transfer the cookie dough to the prepared baking pan and spread into an even layer. Set aside while preparing the topping.
To a microwave safe bowl add the chopped semi-sweet baking bar and heavy cream. Heat on high for 1 minute then allow to rest for 30 seconds before stirring to a smooth consistency.
Stir in the light corn syrup until fully incorporated.
Allow to cool for 4-5 minutes before pouring the chocolate over the cookie dough, spreading it into an even layer then top evenly with the mini m&m’s.
Place into the refrigerator to chill for 3 -4 hours to allow the cookie dough to chill and the chocolate layer to firm up.
Once chilled, gently lift the cookie dough bars out of the pan using the overhanging parchment paper. Slice into 16 (2x2 inch) squares and serve.

Notes

It is essential to heat treat the all-purpose flour prior to using in this no-bake recipe as the heat kills any potential bacteria that may be found in the raw flour.
Be sure to scrape out all the sweetened condensed milk from the can and add it to the bowl to ensure the proper texture of the cookie dough.
You can substitute 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips for the chopped baker’s bar. Be sure to use a good quality chocolate chip to ensure it melts properly when heated with the heavy cream.

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