S’mores are another nostalgic dessert that instantly transports me to summers up at my family cabin. I was up at the cabin with my partner a few weekends ago, and naturally we forgot to bring up ingredients to make s’mores. Once we got back to the cities, I got straight to testing recipes for a s’mores-like dessert with no roasting required. Through some trial and error, I have determined a few key ingredients and methods to make this bar stand out and give it a true s’mores flavor. These bars can be made ahead of time or served day-of. Perfect for summer BBQs and game nights.
Key Ingredients and Tips
The base cookie of the bars comes from my Java Chip Cookie recipe. I have made a few key substitutions and additions: replacing 1/4 cup of flour with graham cracker crumbs, adding cinnamon to the dough, and omitting the brewed coffee and grounds. The dough also does not need to be chilled in this case, and I wouldn’t recommend it as it would add extra time to bake the bars. Marshmallow fluff is sandwiched between the dough to add the perfect gooey center. Some fluff will poke out of the dough and get extra toasted, only adding to the s’mores flavor.
S’more Cookie Bars
Recipe by
Servings
8 bars
Prep time
15 minutes
Cooking time
45 minutes
S’mores bars are a great mess-free alternative to the traditional s’more when you don’t have access to a bonfire. Graham cracker cookie dough is layered with marshmallow fluff and chocolate chips, which get slightly toasted in the oven. Enjoy with a cold glass of milk and bring back childhood memories.
Ingredients
- 1/2Cup butter, softened or browned and cooled completely
- 1/2Cup tightly packed light brown sugar
- 1/4 Cup granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 1/2 tsp vanilla
- 1 Cup flour
- 1/4 Cup crushed graham cracker
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 dash ground cinnamon
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 1/2 Cups chocolate chunks, divided
- 3 Tbsp marshmallow fluff
Directions
- Prep and Preheat: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and line a 9 x 5″ loaf pan with parchment paper, leaving enough overhang on the sides to life the bars out of the pan after baking.
- Brown Butter: In a small saucepan over low heat, melt one stick of butter, stirring until fully melted. Allow the butter to foam and simmer slightly until browned. if it begins to boil, turn down the heat. The butter solids should be an amber color, and there will be a nutty aroma emitting from the butter. Set aside and cool completely.
- Mix Wet Ingredients: Add room temperature butter and sugars in a large bowl, mixing until the color has lightened slightly and the brown butter solids are completely combined. Add in the egg and vanilla extract, mixing until fully combined. Scrape the sides of the bowl and the spatula to incorporate all the egg evenly.
- Sift and Add Dry Ingredients: Add in flour, graham cracker crumbs, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Stir until the flour is almost completely incorporated. Add in 1/3 cup chocolate chips and stir to evenly incorporate.
- Add Dough to Pan and Layer:
- Bake: Bake for 40-45 minutes. The bars are done when the edges and top are set and an inserted toothpick comes out with moist crumbs attached. If the batter in the center is raw, bake for 5 more minutes.
- Cool: Remove from oven and cool for 30 minutes in the pan. Using the parchment paper, remove the bars from the pan. Cool completely on a wire rack, about 1 hour or serve warm after 15 more minutes.
- Store: You can store these bars at room temperature for about 3 days, though they may harden a bit after day 2.
Notes
1. To make sure the brown butter is at the correct temperature, ensure that the butter has started to solidify. It should still be soft but not liquid, much like a softened butter.
2. To make a larger batch, double the recipe and use an 8 by 8 aluminum pan. Start checking the bars at about 45 minutes and re-check every 5 until baked through.
The Whisking Tree 
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