Swig Sugar Cookie Bars

I have been a big blubbery, crying mess these past few weeks and this recipe for Swig Sugar Cookie Bars only reminds me of the source of my crazy emotions.

My oldest son is preparing to leave for two years to serve a mission for our church in San Diego, California.  He has been gone at college for the past year and is only home for a week before he leaves.  Every ounce of my motherly instinct wants to call a mommy foul on him for only being here a week, but how can I?  I am so proud of him and the choice he has made.  I just wish I had more than a week together before I don’t see him again for 2 years.  You understand, right?

Our week together has been nothing short of crazy as we try to do everything and purchase everything that he will need while he is gone.  The list is extensive and we live in the middle of nowhere Minnesota, which makes it even harder!

Since he has been gone for a year at school, the first thing he said to me when we got in the car at the airport was “So Mom….what kind of great food are you going to make me this week?”  How can I turn a request like that down?  When I saw these bars over on Real Life Dinner, I instantly knew this would be a home run with my boy.  His favorite cookies are those expensive Lofthouse cookies you get in the bakery section of your grocery store.  These bars are a thousand times better!  Yes, a thousand 🙂
They are soft, dense and moist, which for me means cookie perfection.  I am not a fan of cake textured cookies at all.  The frosting recipe is my favorite buttercream recipe and it is always a huge hit.  I did add a dash of almond extract to the bars because just that little flavoring does an amazing job of adding great depth of flavor that most sugar cookies lack.

These come together really quick so go make a batch and come back to tell me what you think.  Just leave me a quick comment below!  And, I wouldn’t mind some love and support as well….my tears are already freely flowing and he hasn’t even left yet!

Swig Sugar Cookie Bars

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• Yield: 24 bars 1x

Ingredients

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Bars

• 1/2 C butter, room temperature
• 1/4 C + 2 Tb canola oil
• 1/2 C + 2 Tb granulated sugar
• 1/4 C + 2 Tb powdered sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 Tb water
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 tsp almond flavoring
• 2 3/4 C flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• pinch of baking soda

Frosting

• 1/2 C butter, room temperature
• 4 C powdered sugar
• 1/4 C half and half
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 tsp almond flavoring
• pinch salt

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Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and lightly grease a 9×13 pan.
2. Using your mixer with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter, oil and both sugars until smooth. Add the egg, water, vanilla and almond flavorings then beat until smooth. Add the flour, salt, baking powder and soda then beat until completely combined.
3. Use a rubber spatula and evenly spread the batter in the greased pan. Sprinkle another tablespoon of sugar over the top before putting in the oven for 14-16 minutes. You want the edges of the bars to just barely start to turn brown…..just barely! If you overcook them, they will be dry and crumbly. Allow the bars to cool completely before frosting.
4. While the bars cool, beat together all the ingredients for the frosting and once the bars have cooled, frost the bars before slicing.

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1 bar
• Calories: 174
• Sugar: 6g
• Sodium: 64mg
• Fat: 11g
• Saturated Fat: 5g
• Unsaturated Fat: 5g
• Trans Fat: 0g
• Carbohydrates: 17g
• Fiber: 0g
• Protein: 2g
• Cholesterol: 29mg