Soft Batch Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars

I’ve been slowly easing out of life in corporate America. After working at the same place for 33 years you get comfortable. You get used to your job and the people and the routing of it all. As I said before, it was one of the hardest decisions that I have ever had to make and it was scary, damn scary, but I felt it was the right time and right move for me.

I am so happy with my new life. I have time, precious time. I used to wake up at 5:45am. I left the house at 7:15am and I got home at 5:30pm, 5 days a week. I ran in the door, put dinner together, cleaned up, did the laundry, got my clothes ready for the next day, thought about what I’d make for dinner the next day, tried to keep it simple so I could have something on the table at a decent hour. It wasn’t easy. Now I wake up at 6:30am, leave at 7:30am and I’m home by 2:30pm. Those precious few hours make all the difference in my life. I have time to make a nice dinner. I have time to do laundry, organize, clean, craft if I want, plan meals, read a book! My life has really slowed down and I love it.

I work for my friends company and they treat us all like family. I have the best boss on the planet and I’m stress free. You can’t put a price on that my friends.

I’m so grateful for this new life. I appreciate every single day and I get to bake for people other than my family and neighbors! We have 3 young techs that I get to bake goodies for. As our first staff meeting approached I was giddy with anticipation thinking about what I could make. I know that young men can eat lots of sweets, my boys are living proof of that, so I choose to make these Soft Batch Chocolate Chip Cookie bars.

These are made on a half sheet tray so you get a lot of bars. This is a thin bar cookie and it makes a lot!

Soft Batch Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
Recipe from Real Life Dinner
PRINTABLE RECIPE
¾ cup softened butter (12 tablespoons)
3 ounces cream cheese, softened
1½ cups packed brown sugar
½ cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
3 tsp vanilla
3½ cups all-­purpose flour
3 tsp cornstarch
1½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp course sea salt or ¾ tsp regular salt
2 cups semi­-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Spray a large cookie sheet 15”x11” (half sheet tray) with cooking spray and set aside. With your stand mixer or a hand mixer, cream together the butter, softened cream cheese, brown sugar and granulated sugar until well combined. Add the eggs and vanilla and continue mixing for 3 minutes or until mixture is very light and fluffy. Scrape sides down halfway through mixing.

Add the flour, corn starch, baking soda, and salt and mix until well combined. Add chocolate chips and mix or stir until combined. Scoop mixture out evenly over baking sheet. The batter is thick so it helps to drop the dough in increments over the pan and then spread it.

Bake at 350 degrees for 15 – 20 minutes. Place cookie sheet on cooling rack and allow cookie bars to cool completely. You can put them in the fridge to speed up this process if desired. You can eat them warm but they are much easier and less crumby and messy if allowed to cool completely.