S’mores Cookie Bars

S’mores Cookie Bars are OMG DELICIOUS! These start with a graham cracker crust, then topped with a cookie layer, and finished off with some extra chocolate, marshmallows, and reserved graham cracker crumbs. SO good, and best served warm!

Totally into cookie bars lately. Bring on fan-fav Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Blondies, some mouth-watering Brown Butter Blondies, and these addicting Frosted Sugar Cookie Bars. All are amazingly good, and since they all require a square pan, you won’t have too many leftovers!

S’mores Bars

Going camping this summer? Have a fire pit at home? Well, these require neither! You can pretend you’re camping and whip up a batch of your favorite s’mores bars right in the comfort of your home. And guess what? They’re WAY better than traditional s’mores!

Yup, I said it. I’ll never enjoy a regular s’mores after eating these. NO comparison, folks. Restaurants…take note. Those table-side s’mores are no bueno. Make THESE BARS and your guests will be ordering them every singe time they dine with you.

You can even take a container of these with you when you camp. Just warm them up over the fire and eat them while they are ooey gooey. Or make a regular old s’more and don’t make me tell you “I told you so”. 😀

Ingredients Needed for a Graham Cracker Crust

This is the same crust I use in my French Silk Pie, and I cut it down slightly for this recipe. It is slightly bigger than you need, but you can just add some of the extra to the top of the bars. It’s so yummy that way anyway!

• Graham Crackers – 1 1/4 cups of crushed graham crackers are required. You’ll need about 1 1/2 sleeves of crackers (from a traditional box).
• Sugar – Just three tablespoons needed to add some sweetener to the crust.
• Butter – You’ll need to melt five tablespoons of butter.

How to make a graham cracker crust

1. Use a food processor to crush the graham crackers.
2. Combine the crushed crackers, sugar, and melted butter to a bowl. Stir to combine.
3. Press graham cracker crumbs into a square pan prepared with parchment paper.
4. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven until done.

Ingredients for the Cookie Layer

• Butter – I always go with unsalted butter. Make sure you let it soften to almost room temperature before using.
• Sugar – I used all brown sugar, but you could use half brown and half granulated sugar, if desired.
• Egg – Just one large egg required.
• Vanilla – I use the Watkin’s Vanilla brand, easily found on Amazon.
• Flour – You’ll need 1 1/4 cups of all-purpose flour for these cookies.
• Baking Soda – Needed to leaven the bars!
• Salt – Just a pinch of kosher salt.
• Marshmallows – You’ll add the mini marshmallows right into the cookie layer. Plus a few extra for the top of the bars!
• Chocolate Chips – I went with semi-sweet chocolate chips, but dark chocolate would be excellent as well.
• Chocolate Bar – Adding one full-sized chocolate bar to the top of the cookie layer makes these picture perfect!

How to make the s’mores cookie layer

1. Mix wet ingredients. Using a large standing mixer (or a hand mixer), cream together the butter and sugar. Add the egg and vanilla and mix again.
2. Mix dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, and salt.
3. Combine. Pour the dry ingredients into the wet and mix until just combined.
4. Add goodies. Then add the mini marshmallows and chocolate chips, and stir with a spatula.
5. Add batter to pan. Carefully, drop cookie batter by spoonful onto the baked graham cracker crust. I use my hands so I can more easily leave the crust in tact.
6. Bake. Bake for 15 minutes and remove momentarily to add additional ingredients.
7. Add more goodies. Add the chocolate squares to the top of the cookie layer, along with another handful of mini marshmallows. Then sprinkle some reserved graham cracker crumbs to the top!
8. Bake again. Bake for an additional 10-11 minutes, or until it’s done to your liking. The insides will be slightly gooey, which is a good thing!
9. Let sit. Letting the s’mores bars sit in the pan will allow them to sit up a bit (about 10 minutes). Then carefully remove the bars using the parchment paper as handles. Place on cooling rack.
10. Serve. Serve the bars warm or let them sit longer, allowing them to firm up even more.

Storing and Freezing S’mores Cookie Bars

• Storing – Place bars in an airtight container and store on the counter for three to four days.
• Freezing – You can freeze these for up to two months. But I suggest either eating them or sharing them with neighbors and friends instead! I actually love sending goodies to Mike’s work and they get devoured quickly.

Tips for the best S’mores Bars

• Using a graham cracker crust is worth the extra step. That buttery crust will not go unnoticed! And reserving some crumbs for the tops is 10/10.
• Set a timer! When baking the cookie layer, make sure you set a timer so you can remove the pan, add more toppings, and continue baking. This is key to the look, and it’s worth it as well.
• Don’t forget to add parchment paper to the pan. This makes it way easier to pull the bars out of the pan without messing them up. You’ll be glad you did!
• Bake to your liking. If you like less gooey, bake these for slightly longer. If you like them gooey, follow my directions. 😀
• Serve with milk or hot chocolate. Depending on the time of year, I suggest you pour either a large glass of milk or a cup of hot cocoa. Super fun!

I’m personally not much for camping. But if I were, I’d be taking some of these along to enjoy around a campfire. I might share a few as well.

Kitchen Tools Used: (affiliate links)

• Food Processor
• USA 8×8 Pans