Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Gooey Bars

Cookie dough lovers, rejoice! These Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Gooey Bars are over the top and not apologizing for it! Gooey, chewy, and loaded with buttery cookie dough flavor, these bars are absolutely delicious.

There’s something so intoxicating about cookie dough – don’t you agree?

I mean, it’s easily one of my favorite flavor profiles because it’s so comforting and homey and perfect.

And I think the whole “unsafe to eat” thing makes it even more alluring. It’s like the notorious bad boy at school – you know he probably gets in fights for fun and steals lunch money from kids named Arthur but he makes you feel gooey inside so you still make out with him behind the bleachers. Just me? Nevermind.

But no need to worry here because while these are called ‘Cookie Dough Gooey Bars’, the cookie dough gets baked so it’s safe – but it still magically retains that cookie dough goodness we all love. Swoon.

These Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Gooey Bars consist of three lovely layers. The first layer is the crust, which is made up with cake mix, butter, and an egg so it’s nice and soft, but stable enough to hold the next two layers. The middle layer is a thick, buttery, chocolate chip-studded layer of cookie dough! Lastly, the top layer is what makes these bars “gooey”: a mind-blowing combination of cream cheese, confectioners’ sugar, some eggs, vanilla, and melted butter.

But when this bakes, everything gets gooey and perfect. The cookie dough bakes but because it’s sandwiched between the sturdy crust and the gooey topping, it remains dough-like and soft with buttery, brown-sugary pockets of deliciousness with little studs of chocolate chips throughout.

In a word, they’re heavenly.

I like to finish them off with a little dusting of confectioners’ sugar for good measure, and a little sprinkling of miniature chocolate chips to drive home that cookie dough flavor. But that’s just because I fall for bad things… and these bars are so bad yet so gooooooood.

*adapted from my cookbook, Out of the Box Desserts

Print Recipe

5 from 1 vote

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Gooey Bars

These Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Gooey Bars are fantastic, soft and chewy bars with a gooey, brown sugary chocolate chip cookie dough layer!

Prep Time2 hours hrs 10 minutes mins

Cook Time40 minutes mins

Total Time2 hours hrs 50 minutes mins

Course: Bars, Dessert

Cuisine: American, Dessert

Servings: 15 -18

Author: Hayley Parker, The Domestic Rebel

Ingredients

• FOR THE CRUST:
• One box yellow cake mix
• 1/2 cup butter melted
• 1 large egg
• One 24-count refrigerated cookie dough package at room temperature
• FOR THE FILLING:
• 8 ounces (One 8-ounce package) cream cheese softened
• 3 large eggs
• One 16-ounce package confectioners' sugar
• 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup butter melted
• Additional confectioners' sugar and mini chocolate chips for garnish optional

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 9 by 13" rectangular baking dish with foil, extending the sides of the foil over the edges of the pan. Spray the foil liberally with cooking spray; set aside.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the cake mix, melted butter, and egg with the paddle attachment and beat slowly until a dough comes together. Press the dough evenly into the bottom of the prepared pan.
• Take pieces of the cookie dough and flatten them in the palm of your hand. Gently press the pieces of cookie dough together on top of the crust layer, like you're putting together a puzzle, until the cookie dough layer is even. Set aside.
• Wipe out the stand mixer bowl and add in the cream cheese. Beat until smooth and soft, 1 minute. Gradually add in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the confectioners' sugar slowly until combined, followed by the vanilla. Lastly, slowly pour in the melted butter with the mixer on low speed until incorporated. Pour the batter evenly over the layers in the pan and smooth out the top.
• Bake for 35-45 minutes or until the center is just about set. The center may jiggle slightly, but it should not be sloshing around in the pan. You do NOT want to over-bake these; they're called gooey bars for a reason and they'll continue to set up as they cool. Cool completely, then refrigerate for at least 2 hours, up to overnight, to set before cutting into bars. Just before serving, garnish with additional confectioners' sugar and miniature chocolate chips, if desired.

Soft, chewy, dreamy and GOOEY! You’ll love these 🙂

Have a super sweet day!

xo, Hayley