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German Chocolate Cookie Bars have a chewy chocolate cookie layer topped with gooey homemade German chocolate coconut frosting.
German Chocolate Cookie Bars
These German chocolate cookie bars are perfectly chewy with a crunchy, yet gooey coconut frosting topping. They are heavenly! And SO EASY to make! I have probably made these German Chocolate Cookie Bars at least 5 times since the beginning of the year. I love them! I got this recipe from our friends over at Six Sisters Stuff who adapted the recipe from Paula Deen.
These would be a great treat for Easter — just shake up some green food coloring with the coconut before adding it to the recipe and add little mini eggs to the top. You can’t go wrong with these bars. They are a new favorite at our house! They are so gooey and delicious! Oh and did I mention they are super EASY? I almost always have all the ingredients on hand so I make these whenever I have a sweet tooth and I don’t want to make a trip to the store!
More Favorite Cookie Bar Recipes
You can’t go wrong with these delicious German Chocolate Cookie Bars but if you are looking for MORE delicious treats like this one, give some (or all) of these a try:
- Caribbean Coconut Fudge Bars: These tasty bars come straight from St. John’s in the Caribbean. Chocolate and coconut is ALWAYS a winning combination! You will love all the delicious layers of these bars!
- Coconut Lime Cheesecake Bars: Craving a taste of the islands but looking for something more on the fruity side? You have GOT to try these coconut lime cheesecake bars. One of the most popular recipes on our site!
- Coconut Pecan Cookie Bars: These cookie bars are SO easy to whip up. No cake mix needed! Only a few easy ingredients and you’ve got yourself dessert in about 30 minutes!
- We have MANY MANY more cookie and bar recipes… check them ALL out HERE!
Update:
As you will see in the recipe below you can use either a German Chocolate Cake Mix or a Devil’s Food Cake Mix. Originally we started off ALWAYS making it with German chocolate cake mix but when I was craving these and found all I had in the pantry was a Devil’s Food Cake mix I made it with that and haven’t gone back since. They were way more moist and I liked the taste better. Since I made this discovery months after we posted the first time, it was too late to change the name.. so we still call them German Chocolate Cookie bars but really we like them best when they are “Devil’s Food Cake bars with coconut topping”. Both ways are delicious so if you want to keep with the German theme, feel free to stick with it. You really can’t lose.
How To Make German Chocolate Cookie Bars
German Chocolate Cookie Bars
Video
Equipment
- 9×13 inch pan
Ingredients
Crust:
- 1 box devil's food cake mix not the kind with pudding added* (see comments above
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter melted
- 1 large egg
Filling:
- 1 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk (fat free works great too)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 large egg
- 1 cup chopped pecans
- 1 cup shredded coconut
- 1/2 cup milk chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Grease a 9×13 inch baking pan (I used non-stick cooking spray).
- In a medium bowl, mix together the cake mix, butter and egg, and press into the bottom of the prepared pan.
- The crust should not come up the sides.
- Bake for 7 minutes and remove from the oven. The crust will not look done.
- While the crust is baking, mix together the sweetened condensed milk, vanilla, egg, pecans and coconut.
- Pour evenly over the warm crust.
- Sprinkle evenly with the chocolate chips.
- Bake for 24-30 minutes, until the top is a light golden brown.
- Remove from the oven and cool completely before cutting into squares.
Nutrition Information
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EVERY TIME I MAKE THIS RECIPE, IT IS A HIT!!
FRIENDS ALWAYS WANT THE RECIPE ..
I DO USE DEVILS FOOD CAKE MIX RATHER THAN GERMAN CHOCOLATE
AND ALMOND EXTRACT RATHER THAN VANILLA
DO NOT OVERBAKE .. EDGES SHOULD BE BROWN AND CENTER LIGHT LIGHT BROWN
EITHER CAKES ARE YUMMY
My whole family love these cookie bars!
Loved these bars so much! They’re delicious and easy to make 🙂
Wondering if these would freeze well and if so, how would you do it to get the best results? I am needing to make a very large quantity. Thanks!
I haven’t tried freezing them before, but I would probably try to freeze the base and then make the topping closer to serving. Hope this helps!
I haven’t made these German Chocolate Cake Mix Cookie Bars yet, but plan to make them later today.
I’m sure they are delicious, but I do feel there needs to be some clarification, as to the fact that the recipe lists them as German or Dutch origination. This is incorrect.
German chocolate is not named after the country nor does it have anything to do with German or Dutch cuisine. German Chocolate originated in the United States and was discovered by a chocolate maker by the name of Samuel German, thus the name German Chocolate.
I am baking them right now… way over 30 minutes and it still doesn’t look done. The mixture isn’t golden. They are for my husband’s birthday tonight. I’m worried they won’t turn out.🤷🏼♀️ Any suggestions???
The top should turn a very light golden color. How did they come out? Wish your husband a very happy birthday from us!
German chocolate cake as a cookie, yes please!! Soft, delicious, & chocolatey!
This is my kind of cookies, chunky loaded bar! I can’t wait to make some of these!
These are a delightful treat the whole family will enjoy. They’d be great on a cookie tray too!
This looks so decadent and I love how easy this is to make! I’m saving this to make for the weekend!
Wow these look perfect! I have all the ingredients ready…so I am going to make it tomorrow. Yay!
Yum! My family is going to love this recipe! I can’t wait to give this a try! Looks so delicious and scrumptious!
Delicious and very easy to make!
Made these for a family reunion. What a hit. I used the German Chocolate cake mix and mini chocolate chips and many asked for the recipe. A definite keeper.
I’ve made these several times already they are easy and delicious. Secret don’t overcook. I bake on convection for 24 min. Five stars
I always make birthday cookies in a large round baking stone that has a slightly raised edge. (Pampered chef large white baking stone) Would this recipe work in that? German chocolate is my husband’s favorite cake, so I thought it might be fun to try this.
I think it should work! Let us know how it turns out if you do try it!
How long will they keep without freezing?
They should keep for about a week in an airtight container!
Just took these out if the oven…they smell great! Can’t wait till ypthey cool enough to have one!
Ooh let us know how you liked them! Thanks for the 5-stars!
They are in the oven now!!!
I am taking them to Birthday
Social at church tonight and
Can’t wait to try them.😊😊
Oooh yum! I hope they were a hit!
Just finished baking these delicious cookie bars. Moist, rich, and chocolatey. I have a new addition to our yearly Christmas cookie platter. Yummy!!!
So glad you liked them! Thank you for the 5 stars! Merry Christmas!
Looks yummy can these be frozen ?
Yes, you should be able to freeze these just fine. 🙂
Has anyone tried making these using gluten free cake mix?
My kind of baking! I used to love scratch baking when I was younger, but not so much these days. Thanks and pinned.