Pinned There, Done That: Lofthouse Cookie Bars

A couple of weeks ago, I shared with you all my first Lofthouse Sugar Cookie experience. I expected a lot of backlash for admitting that this experience was a little underwhelming - but I should have known that my wonderful readers would be lovely and positive.

In fact, your positive reaction led me to give Lofthouse a second try. I've been seeing Lofthouse copycat bars all over the web (okay, mostly on Pinterest, and here, and here), and since I have a crazy obsession with bar desserts (as demonstrated here, here, and here), and didn't feel like rolling out dozens of cookies, I decided to go this route.

I also thought this would be the perfect opportunity for another Pinned There, Done That - but you may notice that I'm skipping the usual fanfare. That's because I saw so many versions that I can't attribute the final product to a single one. The closest version comes from Two Peas & Their Pod, mostly because I wanted a recipe that used sour cream instead of cream cheese (confession: I was cleaning out our fridge!).

But enough preamble. After all the hours and hours of research spent on Pinterest (tough job, I know), was the Lofthouse rematch a success? Well, yes and no.  These bars are made with butter, sugar, flour, and eggs, so naturally they're pretty tasty, but I'll be honest, I wasn't wowed.

My biggest regret was that I baked mine in a 9x13-inch pan which made them incredibly thick and cake-like (and we all know how I feel about cake things that aren't actually cakes), so I've made the switch in the recipe to a jelly roll pan. I really think this - coupled with a generous slick of icing - should be enough to make them more Lofthouse-like, but if you're a lover of cake, by all means go for the 9x13!

Lofthouse Cookie Bars
based on this two peas & their pod
1/2 cup butter
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoons vanilla extract
3/4 cups sour cream
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3 cups all-purpose flour

In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, and beat until each is well incorporated. Stir in the vanilla and sour cream. Add the baking soda, baking powder and flour and stir until just incorporated. Dough will be stiff, but sticky. Scrap down the side of the bowl and cover dough tightly with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Meanwhile, grease a jelly roll pan (15x10x1-inch pan) or line with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 425°F. Press the chilled dough evenly into the prepared baking pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until edges begin to turn golden. Cool completely and spread with your favorite buttercream icing.

A few notes: I haven't included my icing recipe here because - guess what - I don't use one. I know it's weird, but I almost always 'eyeball' my frosting recipes and they usually still come out yummy (it's mostly sugar, after all). I suggest using your own personal favorite, but if you're desperate for a recipe, let me know and I'll do my best to write mine down.

I've explained the difference in thickness above, but in case you missed it, using a jelly roll pan will give you thinner bar cookies than the ones pictured here. If you like the thick, cake-like quality of my bars, use a 9x13-inch pan. On the other hand, you can make your bars even less cakey by omitting one of the eggs and taking them out of the oven at the first sign of doneness (about 20 minutes). They won't be very Lofthouse-like, but I'm sure they'll be delicious!

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