Chocolate Chip & Pretzel Cookie Bars
Pretzels and chocolate are like peanut butter and jelly – you’d think they were each made knowing they would some day be paired up with the other. As natural a combination as cheese and crackers, chocolate and peanut butter, or chips and dip. History has it that chocolate-covered pretzels were invented by Herr Joseph Franz von Liebniz in his pretzel bakery in Hamburg, Germany in 1544. Apparently his bakery was next door to a chocolatier and, well, one thing led to another, and one of the most popular chocolate snacks was born. Thank you, Mr. von Liebniz, you were indeed a genius.
These cookie bars are a sensational combination of sweet cookie dough, bittersweet chocolate, and salty pretzels. And because I couldn’t help myself and believe that peanut butter makes just about everything better, I went ahead and drizzled some on top of these cookie bars, along with more chocolate and more crushed pretzels. Have you ever had the Ben & Jerry flavor “Chubby Hubby”? It’s always been a favorite of mine. Chocolate-covered peanut butter-filled pretzel nuggets. Again, more genius. So I threw some of that flavor onto these cookie bars.
More scrumptious bars you may like:
Strawberry Pretzel Squares
Coconut Chocolate Chunk Blondies
Seven-Layer Bars
Chunky Pecan Pie Bars
Chocolate Chip & Pretzel Cookie Bars
Ingredients
- 2 cups (250 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) salt
- 1½ sticks (1.5 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 cup (220 g) light brown sugar
- ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 12 ounce (340.2 g) bag bittersweet chocolate chips, or semisweet, if you prefer
- 1½ cups (63.75 g) mini pretzel twists, coarsely chopped
- ¼ cup (45 g) chocolate chips, for drizzling (optional)
- ¼ cup (64.5 g) peanut butter, for drizzling (optional)
- ¼ cup (20 g) pretzels, crumbled, for topping (optional)
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a 9x13 pan with cooking spray.
- 2. In a bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda and salt. Using a mixer, beat the butter and both sugars at medium speed until light and fluffy, about 1 minute. Beat in the eggs and the vanilla extract. On low speed, beat in the dry ingredients just until incorporated. Stir in the chocolate chips and pretzel pieces.
- 3. Spread the batter evenly in the pan and press it down evenly with a spatula. Bake for 30 minutes, until golden brown. Transfer the pan to a rack and cool completely.
- 4. In separate sandwich size baggies, melt the chocolate chips and peanut butter. Cut off a small corner on each bag and drizzle the chocolate and peanut butter over the top of the bars. Sprinkle the extra crushed pretzels on top. Let set and then cut into squares.
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag @thebrowneyedbaker on Instagram so I can see it!
These are great! I really liked them, and the drizzle on the top makes them look even better. I think the one thing I’m craving that’s missing here is caramel. They’d be REALLY good with an added caramel taste to give them some more zing. I was thinking about baking some rolos into the top when they go into the oven…maybe I’ll try that next time.
These were delicious! I live abroad and was only able to get my hands on Goldfish pretzels but they still turned out great. Really moist and a wonderful mix of salty and sweet.
Just made pretzel-chocolate-chip-cookies inspired by this recipe. I was in a cookie rut but I am beyond excited about these! It’s taking serious self control not to finish them all before the barbeque I’m supposed to bring them to tomorrow….
These have made me famous around here! The combination of salty and sweet is perfect and then, when mixed with a cookie, it’s perfection. They are quick and easy and definitely a crowd pleaser
i’ve made these and put them in a air tight container since i baked them three days before the party. THEY WERE SO STALE AND HARD AS A ROCK (like a biscotti). beware if making ahead of time….
I made these and wrote about them here. For some reason they didn’t set up very well. Luckily, they were still every bit as delicious as I had imagined. Thank you for sharing the recipe.
this is the first Brown Eyed Baker recipe that has got me hooked! the only problem is that I like the dough just as much as the actual cookie (:
OMG. I made these last week, and they were so good that I am making them again tonight. A definite MUST-MAKE. I’m going to try adding more chocolate this time. Either way, favorite cookies yet. :)