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Swig Sugar Cookie Bars Recipe

A white plate with a stack of three sugar cookie bars stacked on top of each other with a bite out of a corner of the top bar. Faded in the background are more cut frosted sugar cookie bars. Overlaid at the bottom is the text reallifedinner.com.

The Best Sugar Cookie Bars Ever!

I’ve never been to “Swig,” but I tried a knockoff recipe for their cookies a couple of years ago and adapted it to make my own Knockoff Swig Sugar Cookies. The cookies are soft and chewy with slightly crispy edges. The flavor is unique and perfect. They quickly became one of my favorite cookies. 

When I make them, I do a couple of slight adjustments to the recipe because I don’t keep cream of tartar around, and I use cream cheese instead of sour cream in the frosting.

Amazing Bars & Brownies

I love sugar cookies, but don’t always love the extra time/love it takes to make them. I decided to make these yummy cookies in bar form and boom baby! So much faster, easier, and AWESOME! Best Sugar Cookie Bars EVER!!!

When you’re done making these, check out my other Swig Cookie Bar Recipes.

How to Make Swig Sugar Cookie Bars

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  • Grease a 9×13 pan and set aside.
  • Using a stand mixer, thoroughly cream butter, oil, granulated sugar, and powdered sugar until combined.
  • Next, add the egg, water, and vanilla. Mix until well combined.
  • Add the flour and sprinkle in the salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Mix for approx. 1 minute or until completely combined.
  • Spread/press the cookie mixture evenly into the greased 9×13 pan. (I like to use a sandwich baggie on my hand to press it down evenly. Spray baggie with cooking spray if necessary.)

A glass 9x13 baking dish with dollops of cookie dough with a hand with a sandwich baggie over it held above the dish.

  • Next, evenly sprinkle 1 tbsp of sugar over the uncooked bars before placing them in the oven.
  • Bake at 350 degrees for 14-16 minutes or until edges are just barely turning a light brown. Do not over-bake or the bars will be dry.
  • Let the bars completely cool, and then frost with frosting recipe before cutting.
  • Make the frosting.
  • Mix butter, cream cheese, powdered sugar, salt and vanilla with a hand mixer or whisk.
  • Next, add in the milk or cream until nice and smooth.

A glass bowl of pink frosting with a metal utensil inserted on the right.

  • Frost bars when they are completely cooled.

A glass 9x13 baking dish of Swig Sugar Cookie Bar Recipe with pink frosting with a diagonal design.

  • Delicious and pretty…..!
  • Enjoy!

Three sugar cookie bars stacked on a white plate with a bite taken out of the corner of the top bar. Faded in the background are more cookie bars. The text of the title and reallifedinner.com is overlayed on the center of the photo.

Tips for How to Make Swig Sugar Cookie Bars

  • I use one of my favorite tips in this recipe. The dough is a little too thick to spread well and a little too sticky to press down without a big mess on your hands. I slip a sandwich baggie over my hand and spray it with cooking spray. I then quickly press the dough down evenly in the pan, and viola, my hands stay clean.
  • Also, I like to keep the finished cookie bars refrigerated. They don’t need to be refrigerated. I just like to eat them cold. Does that make me weird?
  • …and really quick. Let’s have a chat about how much an offset spatula can change your life when trying to frost something in a pan. Totally worth the ten bucks.

A Pinterest collage photo of a small plate of three Swig Sugar Cookie Bars stacked on top of each other with a bite taken out of a corner of the top one. Faded in the background are more swig cookie bars. The text of the title is at the top.

Baker’s Tools for Cookie Bars:

Pinterest picture with three sugar cookie bars with pink frosting stacked on top of each other on a small white plate. The top cookie bar has a bite taken out of the corner. The text Swig Cookie Bars separates the photo and the recipe's ingredient list at the bottom.

Must-Make Swig Sugar Cookie Bars

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4.8 from 11 reviews
Swig Sugar Cookie Bars Recipe
 
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Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Best Sugar Cookie Bars Ever!!! So much faster and easier than traditional sugar cookies but just as fun and delicious. You can substitute sour cream in place of the cream cheese in the frosting if desired.
Author:
Recipe type: Cookie Bars
Cuisine: Dessert
Serves: 24
Ingredients
  • ½ cup softened butter
  • ¼ cup + 2 Tbsp Canola or Vegetable oil
  • ½ cup + 2 Tbsp granulated sugar
  • ¼ cup + 2 Tbsp powdered sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 Tbsp water
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 2¾ cup all-purpose flour
  • ½ tsp salt
  • ½ tsp baking powder
  • pinch of baking soda, approx 1/16 of a tsp
  • a little extra granulated sugar for sprinkling on top of dough before baking (about 1-2 TBSP)
  • FROSTING:
  • ¼ cup softened butter
  • 1 ounce softened cream cheese
  • 1½ cups powdered sugar
  • pinch of salt
  • dash of vanilla
  • 1-2 tbsp milk or cream
Instructions
  1. DIRECTIONS FOR COOKIE BARS:
  2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  3. Grease a 9x13 pan and set aside.
  4. Using a stand mixer, thoroughly cream butter, oil, granulated sugar, and powdered sugar until combined.
  5. Next, add the egg, water, and vanilla. Mix until well combined.
  6. Add the flour and sprinkle in the salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Mix for approx. 1 minute or until completely combined.
  7. Spread/press the cookie mixture evenly into the greased 9x13 pan. (I like pressing a sandwich baggie on my hand to press it down evenly. Spray baggie with cooking spray if necessary.)
  8. Next, evenly sprinkle 1 tbsp of sugar over the uncooked bars before placing them in the oven.
  9. Bake at 350 degrees for 14-16 minutes or until the edges are just barely turning a light brown. Do not overbake, or the bars will be dry.
  10. Let the bars completely cool, and then frost with frosting recipe before cutting.
  11. DIRECTIONS FOR FROSTING:
  12. Mix butter, cream cheese, powdered sugar, salt and vanilla with a hand mixer or whisk.
  13. Next, add in the milk or cream until nice and smooth.
  14. Frost bars when they are completely cooled.
  15. Enjoy!

Sugar Cookies You'll Love!

A cooling rack with soft and fluffy sugar cookies.Soft and Fluffy Sugar CookiesKnockoff Swig Sugar CookiesHeart-shaped sugar cookies frosted and decorated sitting on a black wire cooling rack.Easy Cut-Out Sugar Cookie Recipe

A three-photo Pinterest collage with the text of the title in the middle. It has three pictures in it. There is one photo at the top of a white plate with a stack of three sugar cookie bars stacked on top of each other with a bite out of a corner of the top bar. Faded in the background are more cut frosted swig sugar cookie bars. The bottom left photo is three sugar cookie bars stacked on top of each other with a bite out of a corner of the top bar. The bottom right photo is a glass 9x13 baking dish of Swig Sugar Cookie Bars with pink frosting with a diagonal design.

Other Swig Sugar Cookies & Bars Recipes

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58 Comments

    • Maria

      Hi Shami, The recipe calls for 1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp of granulated sugar for the cookie bar dough and then an additional tablespoon or two for sprinkling over the dough right before baking.

      reply to this comment

  13. Malia

    Hi these are so good! My co worker made them and told me where I could find the recipe! Quick question, I know they are for bars but I was hoping to make them into more of a cookie form for Christmas cookies. Is the time and oven temp going to be the same?

    reply to this comment

    • Maria

      Hi, I actually make these as cookies all the time. I just do circles though, I have never tried cutting them into shapes because I don’t think the dough will roll very well. I just make ball, dip the bottom of a glass in sugar and use it to flatten the dough ball into a circle. The cooking time does change, they bake at 350 for 8 minutes.

      reply to this comment

  21. Halle

    Hi I just barely made these bars for a family party! Everyone is going to love them! How do you store them? In the fridge or in the pantry? I don’t want them to dry out at all! Thanks for the awesome recipe they look so good! I love Swig so these are probably really good!

    reply to this comment

    • Maria

      Hi Halle, I am sorry I didn’t see this comment earlier. I usually keep them in the fridge, just because I like how they taste cold. As long as you keep them in an air tight container or covered tightly they should be fine.

      reply to this comment

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