Peach Pie Cookie Bars
Peach Pie Cookie Bars are a quick, crowd pleasing dessert made with a buttery sugar cookie base, a spiced canned peach pie filling layer and a simple cinnamon sugar topping. They slice into soft, peachy bars that taste like peach pie in an easy, handheld form, perfect for busy weeknights, potlucks and summer parties.
Ingredients
For the sugar cookie dough
- 1 cup 2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 ¾ cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
For the peach pie layer
- 1 can peach pie filling chopped into smaller pieces if the slices are large
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Optional: tiny pinch of nutmeg
- Optional: 1 teaspoon cornstarch if the filling seems very loose
For the topping
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
- ½ to 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat and prep. Set your oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease and line a 9×13-inch baking pan with parchment paper for easy removal later.
- Make the dough. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy (about 2–3 minutes). Beat in the eggs and vanilla. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt, then slowly add to the wet ingredients until a dough forms
- Build the base. Press about two-thirds of the sugar cookie dough evenly into the prepared pan.
- Prepare the filling. Pick the peach slices out of your peach pie filling with a fork and leave most of the syrup behind so the bars do not get soggy. You want a little bit of syrup for moisture, but certainly not all of it. I removed around ¾ cup of syrup total.
- If the peach slices are large, chop them into bite size pieces. Stir in cinnamon and nutmeg (if using). If the mixture seems too watery, add a bit of cornstarch.
- Add the filling. Spoon the peach mixture over the cookie dough and gently spread it into an even layer.
- Swirl with dough. Drop small spoonfuls of the remaining dough across the top of the apples, leaving little gaps so the filling peeks through.
- Sprinkle the topping. In a small bowl, stir together the cinnamon and sugar, then sprinkle evenly over the top.
- Bake. Bake for 35–45 minutes, or until the cookie dough is set and golden brown. The middle might look a little soft but will firm up as it cools.
- Slice. After completely cool, slice into bars. Serve at room temperature, or slightly warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream if you want a peach pie dessert moment in bar form.