Butter Bars From Scratch: Gooey Goodness Awaits!
If you like your dessert rich, creamy, and ooey-gooey, you’re going to love this butter bars recipe!
This ooey gooey butter bars recipe is the stuff of legends. While the shortcut recipe (using boxed yellow cake mix) has been making rounds for years, it’s nothing compared to this homemade from-scratch butter bars. I promise it takes just a few extra steps (and a couple of minutes more) and you have an old-fashioned over-the-top dessert bar that tastes like it came straight from Grandma’s table. I’m excited to share this recipe treasure.
If you’ve never tried a gooey butter bar before, let me tell you about these rich and creamy layers. The bottom is soft and moist like a cake and it’s topped with a sweet custard-like cream cheese layer. Fun fact: because they’re so rich in flavor, they’re often called Neiman Marcus bars.
Keep reading for serving ideas, but these butter bars taste delicious no matter how you serve them. Let’s get baking!
Recipe Ingredients
- All-purpose flour
- Sugar
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Eggs
- Butter
- Cream cheese (check out our easy-peasy homemade cream cheese recipe)
- Eggs
- Powdered sugar
- Wee bit of vanilla extract
I know that seems like a lot of ingredients but it’s just a scant amount for most of them and they come together as quick as a wink. As usual, the full recipe and ingredients are down in the printable recipe card.
How To Make Butter Bars
Place the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, salt, butter, and eggs in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer on low just until a dough is formed.
Line a 9×13 baking dish with foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray or just spray your pan directly with a good coating of cooking spray and leave out the foil part.
The foil makes it easier to remove the bars all at once and get nice clean cuts but it isn’t necessary.
Pat dough into the bottom of the prepared pan and set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, place cream cheese and beat until smooth and creamy. Add the eggs, vanilla, and powdered sugar and beat until well combined and smooth with no lumps. Pour over the crust in the pan.
Bake at 350 for about 50 minutes or until the top is golden brown.
Gooey In The Middle
You’ll have to rely on them looking nice and golden rather than the traditional toothpick test as these are supposed to stay a little gooey in the middle.
Allow your butter bars to cool completely before cutting so the top layer can set a bit.
Hint: These are delicious warm but just not as pretty when you cut them that way. I suggest eating one warm and then letting the rest cool – but you didn’t hear that from me!
Once cooled, sprinkle the tops with a little more confectioner’s sugar, cut, and enjoy!
They also taste great with a serving of whipped cream.
Storage
- Store in an airtight container either at room temperature or in the fridge for up to 5 days.
- Butter bars also freeze really well for up to 3 months. Wrap them individually so you can enjoy a butter bar whenever the craving hits!
Recipe Notes
- For a festive touch, turn your butter bars into cranberry butter bars. Simply add 2 cups of fresh or frozen (and thawed) cranberries to the cream cheese filling.
- Speaking of cranberries, you can also decorate your butter bars with sugared cranberries and fresh mint leaves.
- Other topping ideas include fresh strawberries, caramel sauce, or a simple glaze using powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and milk.
- Enjoy your butter bars at room temperature or cold.
You may also enjoy these other bar recipes:
Recipe for Chocolate Chip Bars
Lemon Bars Recipe and Video Tutorial
Ingredients
Crust
- 2 ½ cups all purpose flour
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 large eggs
- 3/4 cup butter at room temp
Filling:
- 8 oz cream cheese at room temp
- 3 large eggs
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
- Place the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, salt, butter, and eggs in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer on low just until a dough is formed. Line a 9x13 baking dish with foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray or just spray your pan directly with a good coating of cooking spray and leave out the foil part. (The foil makes it easier to remove the bars all at once and get nice clean cuts but it isn't necessary).
- Pat dough into bottom of prepared pan and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, place cream cheese and beat until smooth and creamy. Add 3 eggs, vanilla, and powdered sugar and beat until well combined and smooth with no lumps. Pour over crust in pan.
- Bake at 350 for about 50 minutes or until the top is golden brown. You'll have to rely on them looking nice and golden rather than the traditional toothpick test as these are supposed to stay a little gooey in the middle. Allow to cool completely before cutting so the top layer can set a bit.
Notes
Nutrition
“The hope of the world lies in what one demands, not of others, but of oneself.”
~James Baldwin
They’re bomb my husband makes these all the time Love Em’
So glad you and your husband love em’ 🙂
I made these wonderful bars with a couple of changes. Instead of using room temperature butter, I cut it into chunks and kept it cold. I sifted my flour, baking powder and salt together. I gave my sugar, eggs and flavoring a quick whisk until they were a creamy yellow and then put the crust together. The little chunks of butter dotted throughout the dough looked so good! Once everything was baked and out of the oven, I was left with a wonderfully delicate, buttery crust topped with the gooey filling! Well worth the effort!
I made these yesterday, they are simple to make. They are good and everyone enjoyed them. They remind me of how a pound cake tastes. We especially like the side and corner pieces. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
Thank you so much for giving them a try Julia! So glad you enjoyed them!
Is this unsalted or salted butter?
I use either one, depending on what I have on hand.
I prefer unsalted but use whatever you have on hand. They both work well.