This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, read my disclosure policy.

These Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars are the most delicious gooey bars you’ll ever make. They’re easy cookie bars start with the best chocolate chip cookie recipe and are filled with gooey chocolate and sweetened condensed milk. They’re a gooey bar from heaven!

stacked gooey bars with chocolate chips baked into the center.


Treats like this one are some of my families favorite recipes. We all love chocolate chip cookies and gooey bars – which makes this recipe perfect because it the best combination of the two. These bars taste like a gooey chocolate chip cookie and I cannot think of anything better.

These bars have sweetened condensed milk and milk chocolate chips in the center to make them SO gooey and rich. They have layers of chocolate chip cookie, chocolate, and gooey-ness! I know you’re going to absolutely love these cookie bars.

ingredients in cookie bars laid out on a white counter.

Ingredients Needed

  • Flour: I always use all-purpose flour in my recipes.
  • Sugar: This recipe calls for both brown sugar and regular granulated sugar.
  • Sweetened Condensed Milk – you can use regular or low/non-fat but be sure not to buy evaporated! They’re in the same spot on the shelf so read the can.
  • Butter: I use unsalted typically. If you only have salted butter – omit the salt from the recipe.
  • Chocolate Chips: Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips are my favorite kind of chocolate chips to use in recipes like this one!

Click to see the recipe card below for full ingredients & instructions!

Variations

You can use either Hershey Bars or chocolate chips for the center.

I love to make brown butter chocolate chip cookies for this but you can skip browning – just melt the butter.

process shot of cookie bars being made.
process shot of cookie bars being made.
process shot of cookie bars being made.
process shot of cookie bars being made.
  • Make the cookie dough – this one starts with brown butter! Simply brown the butter and stir all the cookie ingredients together.
  • Add your chocolate chips – any kind!
  • Press some of the dough in the bottom of the pan, then top with sweetened condensed milk and some Hershey candy bars – or more chocolate chips.
  • Press the rest of the dough on top and bake until golden brown.
stacked gooey bars with chocolate chips baked into the center.

Expert Tips

  • If you want to add some variation in the chocolate you use, feel free to try white chocolate chips, chocolate chunks, or dark chocolate chips.
  • I always love adding some flaky sea salt to chocolate recipes like this one! Also, a scoop of vanilla ice cream goes great with pretty much any recipe, but especially this one!
  • If you want to mix anything else in like walnuts, or pecans, that’s great! Just add a half a cup of whatever else you’d like!

Storage

  • Store bars in an airtight container at room temperature.
  • Bars are freezable – place in an airtight container between layers of wax paper so they don’t stick.
stacked gooey bars with chocolate chips baked into the center.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars Recipe

4.27 from 164 votes
My favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe made into a gooey bar. This bar cookie is off the hook amazing – gooey, chocolatey, and perfect!
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 50 minutes
Yield 36 bars
Serving Size 1 bar
Rate RecipePrint Recipe

Ingredients
 

  • 1 cup (226g) unsalted butter , melted
  • ¾ cup (150g) granulated sugar
  • 1 cup (200g) packed brown sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 3 cups (372g) all-purpose flour
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 ½ cups (255g) chocolate chips (or mini chocolate chips)
  • 1 (14 ounce can) sweetened condensed milk
  • 1 4.4 ounce large Hershey bar (or smaller bars to make that same size) (or more chocolate chips)
Save this recipe!
Get this sent to your inbox, plus get new recipes from us every week!

Instructions

  • Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring often, about 6 minutes, until it becomes brown in color. It will foam, reduce, then foam again. Once it’s done cooking the foam is a light brown and it will dissipate after you remove it from the heat. Once it starts to brown, keep stirring so it doesn’t burn. Let sit for about 5 minutes to cool.
  • Pour into an electric mixer fitted with paddle attachment. While still hot, add both sugars and mix on low until combined. Let sit to cool for a few minutes.
  • While butter mixture is cooling, combine flour, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Stir and set aside.
  • Turn mixer (with butter mixture bowl attached) on low. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing completely.  Mix in vanilla extract. Add flour mixture to the wet ingredients and mix until combined. Stir in chocolate chips.
  • Line a 9×13” baking pan with foil and spray with cooking spray for easy removal.
  • Press half the cookie dough in the prepared pan. Pour sweetened condensed milk over the top of the bottom layer (be careful to leave about 1/4” edge around the pan so the milk doesn’t touch the foil), then break up the chocolate bar and drop pieces over the top. Break up the remaining cookie dough and place on top of milk. Press with your hands to flatten. It will mostly cover but not completely cover the bottom layer.
  • Preheat oven to 350°F. Bake for about 30-35 minutes until the tops of the bars start to get golden brown. Cool completely before slicing into bars.

Recipe Video

Recipe Notes

  • Store bars in an airtight container at room temperature.
  • Bars are freezable – place in an airtight container between layers of wax paper so they don’t stick.

Recipe Nutrition

Serving: 1bar | Calories: 172kcal | Carbohydrates: 24g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 23mg | Sodium: 74mg | Potassium: 30mg | Sugar: 15g | Vitamin A: 190IU | Vitamin C: 0.1mg | Calcium: 19mg | Iron: 0.8mg
Nutritional information not guaranteed to be accurate
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Author Dorothy Kern

Did you try this recipe? Click the stars to rate the recipe below

Other Bar Cookie Recipes



Dorothy Kern

Welcome to Crazy for Crust, where I share recipes that are sometimes crazy, often with a crust, and always served with a slice of life.

Learn More About Me
4.27 from 164 votes (141 ratings without comment)

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




146 Comments

  1. 1-poor Ginger! (and poor YOU!)
    2-i looove brown butter and brown sugary goodness and these bars look SO INSANELY INCREDIBLE

    Reply

  2. OMG this is the ultimate comfort food! And the gooey condensed milk center definitely has me drooling. I’m making these asap. Pinned!

    Reply

  4. Ginger sounds like a mix of my old golden retriever, my parents’ new golden, and my current chihuahua mix. Our old golden always slept on my extra pillow that I put down on the ground, our new golden tore up the cardboard “walkway” that the kitchen construction guys laid down in my parents’ house and adores paper towels, and we lovingly refer to our chihuahua as the “Princess.” She also hogs the entire bed/couch/blanket/whatever. Dogs are so funny! And these gooey bars? I’m seriously glad heart healthy week is over because I’m dying to eat that whole stack! Pinned!

    Reply

  5. Was trying to decide what to taketo Bunco tonight & this recipe popped up first thing.  Luckily, I had all the ingredients.
    I have a pan just out of the oven right now..and NO, not too hot to stick my fork in for a little taste.  It took 4 taste to be sure.  LOL.  I wonder if I will have enough left to take to my Bunco group tonight.  They are yum-o  warm.  Can’t wait to try when they are cool…if there is any left to try.

    Reply