{{Short description|Baked good}} '''Bar cookies''', called '''tray bakes''' in the UK and '''slices''' in Australia and New Zealand, are a type of cookie or dense, often chewy, cake that is baked in a shallow flat baking pan such as a square or rectangular cake pan.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=Our 38 Most Decadent Bar Cookie Recipes|url=https://www.southernliving.com/cookie-bar-recipes-6526591|website=Southern Living|access-date=2025-11-29|language=en|date=24 June 2025|last=York|first=Patricia S.}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite web|title=What Exactly Is A British Traybake?|url=https://www.tastingtable.com/1179301/what-exactly-is-a-british-traybake/|website=Tasting Table|date=2023-01-26|access-date=2025-11-29|language=en-US|first=Deborah|last=Martin}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=British desserts, explained for Americans confused by the Great British Baking Show|url=https://www.vox.com/2015/11/29/9806038/great-british-baking-show-pudding-biscuit|website=Vox|date=2015-11-29|access-date=2025-11-29|language=en-US|first=Libby|last=Nelson}}</ref> They can be eaten as a handheld or plated dessert. Brownies are a notable example.

== Preparation == Bar cookies generally are made by spreading a thick batter into a cake pan and baking.<ref name=":4" /> Unlike typical cookies, bar cookies contain more egg and shortening, producing a texture that more closely resembles a cake.<ref name=":6">{{cite book |title=The Oxford Companion to Sugar and Sweets|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2015|isbn=978-0-199-31339-6|editor-last=Goldstein|editor-first=Darra|editor-link=Darra Goldstein|location=Oxford|last=Clarkson|first=Janet|chapter=Bar cookies}}</ref>

Some versions are layered by spreading a layer of batter, topping with a layer or fruit, nuts, chocolate chips, or other ingredients, and topping with another layer of batter before baking.<ref name=":4" /><ref name=":5" /> Typically bar cookies are cooled completely before cutting into their final shape.<ref name=":5" />

== Popularity == Bar cookies are quicker and easier to make than many other desserts, can be made ahead, and travel well, making them popular for events like potlucks.<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":0" /><ref name=":3" /><ref name=":4">{{Cite book|title=A to Z bar cookies|publisher=Chapters Publishing|date=1994|location=Shelburne, Vt|isbn=978-1-881527-55-8|first=Marie|last=Simmons}}</ref>{{Reference page|pages=13-14}} They are versatile and less likely to fail than many baked desserts, which tend to require following recipes exactly.<ref name=":4" />{{Reference page|pages=13-14}} They can often be eaten out of hand, making them popular for casual events and large gatherings.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":3">{{Cite web|title=Bake These Christmas Bar Cookies for a Sweet Holiday Treat|url=https://www.thepioneerwoman.com/food-cooking/meals-menus/g45193384/christmas-bar-cookie-recipes/|website=The Pioneer Woman|date=2024-08-14|access-date=2025-11-29|language=en-US|last=Good|first=Georgia}}</ref>

Bar cookies also are often more substantial than a drop or rolled cookie, which means a single serving can be sufficient.<ref name=":5">{{Cite book|title=The Four-Sided Cookie: 55 Recipes for Delicious Squares and Bars|last=Bodger|first=Lorraine|publisher=St. Martin's Press|year=2000|isbn=978-0312206758}}</ref>

== History == According to Pillsbury, bar cookie entries became increasingly common in the company's Pillsbury Bake-Off competition during the 1970s.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Pillsbury best of the bake-off cookies & bars |date=2008 |publisher=Wiley Pub |isbn=978-0-470-11138-3 |editor-last= |location=Hoboken, NJ |pages=7}}</ref>

== Nomenclature == In the UK, the term tray bake is used as an umbrella term for any dessert baked in a flat pan and cut into small rectangular portions for serving, including what is called a sheet cake in the US; school cake is an example.<ref name=":1" /> In Australia and New Zealand, the term slice can be used for both savory and sweet foods that are baked in a flat pan and cut into small rectangular portions; a zucchini slice is an example of a savory version.

Other names include pan cookies, and squares.<ref name=":6" />

== Notable examples == * Blondie * Brookie * Brownie<ref name=":2">{{Cite book|title=Brownies, Blondies, and Bar Cookies|last=Gates|first=Laura|publisher=HP Books|year=1991}}</ref>{{Reference page|page=1}} * Caramel shortbread * Confetti square * Date square * Fifteens * Flapjack * Food for the Gods * Lemon square * Nanaimo bar * Shortbread * Vanilla slice

== Other examples == {{anchor|Brookie}}A "brookie", a portmanteau of "brownie" and "cookie", is a bar cookie made by spreading a layer of brownie batter over a layer of cookie dough, typically chocolate chip cookie, before baking and slicing into squares.<ref name="southerlivingsamsclub">{{cite web |last=Locker |first=Melissa |date=2025-12-16 |title=Sam's Club Now Offering Popular Bakery Item In Their Cafes |url=https://www.southernliving.com/sam-s-club-cookie-dough-brownies-cafe-menu-11869626 |accessdate=2025-12-22 |work=Southern Living |quote=The store originally released these Cookie Dough Brownies, which are basically brookies with a different name, back in July in the bakery section, and fans instantly fell in love with the trays full of swirls of brownie batter and chocolate chip cookie dough.}}</ref><ref name="jung2021">{{cite web |last=Jung |first=Carolyn |date=2021-09-01 |title=Martha Stewart Brookies - Chocolate Chip Cookie Brownies |url=https://www.foodgal.com/tag/martha-stewart-brookies/ |accessdate=2025-12-22 |work=Food Gal |quote=This decadent recipe is from “Martha Stewart’s Cookie Perfection: 100+ Recipes to Take Your Sweet Treats to the Next Level” (Clarkson Potter) from the Kitchens of Martha Stewart Living. They are essentially Brookies, which are often made as individual circular cookies. This recipe streamlines that because you bake everything in one pan.}}</ref>

== Similar dishes == Dessert bars are also a dessert that is baked in a flat pan and cut into squares.

== References == {{reflist}}

== Further reading == * {{Cite book|edition=|title=Bake It. Slice It. Eat It: One Pan, over 90 Unbeatable Recipes and a Lot of Fun|publisher=Quadrille Publishing|date=2022|location=Erscheinungsort nicht ermittelbar|isbn=978-1-78713-866-7|others=Tom Oxford|first=Oliver|last=Coysh}} *{{Cite book|title=Bar Cookie Bonanza|last=Gohlke|first=Annette|publisher=Reiman Publications|year=1991|isbn=9780898210439}} * {{Cite book|edition=|title=Foolproof Traybakes: 60 Simple and Delicious One-Tin Bakes|publisher=Quadrille Publishing|date=2025|location=Richmond|isbn=978-1-83783-323-8|first=Katie|last=Marshall}}

Category:Desserts Category:Cookies