small batch brookie bars

About These Small Batch Brookie Bars

These small batch brookie bars are a cross between brownie bars and chocolate chip cookies. Its “brookie” name is a portmanteau of the words “brownie” and “cookie.”This brookie bar recipe is made with a combination of a chewy all cocoa powder brownie recipe and a fudgy chocolate chip cookie recipe.

The best part? The recipe is small batch! I instruct you to bake the brookies in a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan. Doing so yields 8 brookie bars, the perfect amount for a small household of 2 to 4 people!

For more small batch brownie recipes, check out Hummingbird High‘s Brownies, Blondies, and Bars recipe collection! Popular recipes include these Small Batch Almond Flour Brownies and these Small Batch Brownies.

small batch brookie bars

Why You Should Make This Recipe

Unlike other brookie bar recipes, this brookie bar recipe comes together easily.

Truthfully, most brookie bar or brookie cookie recipes are more high effort than I would like. That’s because you need to make both a cookie dough AND a brownie batter. Most recipes instruct you to use a stand mixer to cream butter and sugar for both the cookie dough AND the brownie batter. That means having to clean out your stand mixer in the middle of the baking process!

So for my recipe, I developed both the cookie dough and brownie components of the brookie bars to be (almost) one bowl. What does that mean? No need to use a stand mixer at all! All you need to do for both the cookie dough and the brownie batter is to combine everything in one bowl and mix. Pretty cool, right?

Ingredients and Substitutions

Now that I’ve convinced you to make these small batch brookie bars, here’s your shopping list for the recipe:

Shopping List

And let’s talk about some key ingredients and their substitutions:

Ingredient Sources and Substitutions

  • All-Purpose Flour. You can use a 1-1 gluten free all purpose flour replacer to make the recipe gluten free. I like Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free 1 to 1 Baking Flour or King Arthur Flour Gluten Free All Purpose Flour.

  • Kosher Salt. Kosher salt is the best salt for baking recipes. But you can replace the kosher salt in the recipe with table salt. Just use half the amount listed in the recipe when you do!

  • Butter. Either unsalted or salted butter works in this recipe! In my cookbook, Weeknight Baking, I talk about how I sometimes like to use salted butter in chocolate-flavored baked goods. I find that the extra salt from the butter can enhance the chocolate flavor. However, if you go this route, you may want to consider reducing the salt in both the chocolate chip cookie dough and brownie batter recipes by half.

  • Brown Sugar. Brown sugar is available in two varieties: light or dark. Dark brown sugar is my personal preference; because it contains more molasses, I find it to be more flavorful. However, you can use either in this small batch brookie bar recipe without altering its flavor too much.

  • Chocolate Chips.  Check out my blog post on the best chocolate for making chocolate chip cookies. 

  • Cocoa Powder. Cocoa powder, when used in baking recipes, often comes in two varieties: natural unsweetened, and Dutch-processed. For my brookies, I used natural unsweetened cocoa powder. But if Dutch-processed is all you have, go for it! It won’t make too much of a difference in terms of flavor. However, your brookie bars will likely come out darker than mine.

Natural Unsweetened Cocoa Powder versus Dutch-Processed Cocoa Powder

Cocoa powder, when used in baking recipes, often comes in two varieties: natural unsweetened, and Dutch-processed.

Natural unsweetened cocoa powder is more typical and is cocoa powder in its purest form. It is slightly reddish brown in color and results in deeply flavored chocolate goods. Because it is slightly acidic, it is often paired with baking soda in baking recipes to help create a chemical reaction that will cause the baked good to rise in the oven.

Dutch-processed cocoa powder is natural unsweetened cocoa powder that’s been treated with alkaline to neutralize its acidity, giving it a darker color and milder flavor. It is the cocoa powder that is used for making midnight-black baked goods like Oreos.

small batch brookie bars

How To Make Small Batch Brookie Bars

  1. Prep your ingredients for the cookie dough. (Prep Time: 5 minutes)
    Luckily, prepping the ingredients for the chocolate chip cookie dough is fairly easy. Simply measure out all the ingredients for the dough! That’s it.

  2. Make the chocolate chip cookie dough. (Work Time: 5 minutes)
    Similarly, the chocolate chip cookie dough comes together easily. First, whisk together all the dry ingredients for the cookies in a medium bowl. Then, melt the butter in the microwave in a heatproof bowl. Once melted, mix in the brown sugar, egg yolk, and vanilla. Then, mix in the dry ingredients and chocolate chips. Boom! You now have a really good chocolate chip cookie dough.

Next, start assembling the brookie bars.

  1. Make the chocolate chip cookie dough base. (Work Time: 5 minutes)
    These brookie bars are made of three different layers: a partial cookie dough “base”, topped with brownie batter, finished with a sprinkling of more cookie dough. To make the cookie dough base, use a 1-Tablespoon cookie dough scoop to portion half of the cookie dough into balls. Drop the cookie dough balls randomly into the prepared loaf pan and gently press down on each ball to make the “base”.

    I use quotations around the word base because, well, this layer isn’t technically a base. The cookie dough won’t cover the entire bottom of the pan. Instead, it will be kind of patchy (check out the video below for a visual!), with parts of the pan still visible. This is what you want! The cookie dough won’t be a full base layer. It’s simply there to distribute more bites of chocolate chip cookie throughout the brookie bars!

Then, make the brownie batter for the brookie bars.

  1. Prep your ingredients for the brownie batter. (Prep Time: 5 minutes)
    Luckily, prepping the ingredients for the brownie batter is fairly easy. Simply measure out all the ingredients for the batter. If your cocoa powder and confectioners’ sugar is particularly lumpy, sift them into a medium bowl. Then, add the rest of the dry ingredients to that bowl. Boom! You’ve already completed the first step of the brownie recipe.

  2. Make the brownie batter. (Work Time: 5 minutes)
    Like the chocolate chip cookie dough, the brownie batter comes together really easily. First, whisk together all the dry ingredients for the brownie batter in a medium bowl. Then, melt the butter in the microwave in a heatproof bowl. Once melted, mix in the large egg and vanilla. Then, mix in the dry ingredients. Finally, stir in the hot water. The hot water will smoothen out any stubborn lumps and bloom the cocoa powder in the batter—learn more in the FAQ below!

Now, finish assembling the brookie bars.

  1. Make the brownie layer for the brookie bars. (Work Time: 5 minutes)
    Pour the brownie batter into the loaf pan with the cookie dough and use an offset spatula to spread it to cover the cookie dough and smooth its top. The batter will be thick and fudgy—it might be easier to pick up the pan and tilt it from side to side to get it to spread! Don’t worry if the batter doesn’t cover the cookie dough completely. It’ll work out, I promise.

  2. Make the chocolate chip cookie topping for the brookie bars. (Work Time: 5 minutes)
    Sprinkle the top of the brownie batter with generous pinches of the remaining chocolate chip cookie dough. If you’re feeling fancy, don’t be afraid to throw in some chocolate chips, too! Gently press the cookie dough pieces into the batter.

Finally, bake everything!

  1. Bake the brookie bars. (Bake Time: 50 minutes)
    You need to bake the brookie bars for 50 to 55 minutes. I know that seems like a long time for a tiny pan of brownies. But remember—brookie bars are made with both cookie dough AND brownie batter. You’re technically baking two desserts in one pan. And anything that good is worth waiting for, right?!
small batch brookie bars

Recipe Troubleshooting and FAQ

Can I freeze the baked brookie bars?

Yes! To freeze the brookie bars, individually wrap any leftover bars in two layers of plastic wrap, then a layer of aluminum foil. The aluminum foil will prevent the bars from absorbing any other flavors or odors in the freezer. Freeze for up to 3 months.

When ready to serve, transfer to the refrigerator to thaw overnight. Rewarm in the microwave or in the oven at 350°F for 5 minutes before serving.

Best Recipe Tips

Equipment Tip

  • The brookie recipe instructs you to make a cookie dough first, then a brownie batter. Both recipes require you to mix their dry ingredients in a medium bowl as its first step. Good news: you can reuse the same bowl for both the dough and batter. Save yourself from doing more dishes! In fact, you can reuse the same mixing spatulas, too. I mean… it all ends up in the same dessert anyway, lol.

Recipe Technique Tips

  • Be mindful when melting the butter for both the cookie dough and brownie batter! You don’t want the butter to sizzle, crackle, or pop. I chop it up into 1-inch cubes then microwave it on low at 10-second intervals. If you don’t have a microwave, melt the. butter in a small sauce pot over medium-low heat. I stir the butter constantly while monitoring it.

  • And on that note, it’s better to under-melt the butter than over-melt it. In fact, I like to pull the butter from the microwave/stovetop when there are still a couple of solid chunks left. I then stir the butter by hand to melt these chunks. Doing so ensures that my butter is warm but not overly hot. If the butter is too hot, you might risk scrambling and cooking your eggs since you’re adding them directly to the butter!

  • Make sure that the water is very hot, as close to freshly boiled as possible, when you add it to the brownie batter. This is the secret to a super chocolaty brownie! To ensure that my water stays very hot, I pour it into an insulated mug right after boiling. Then, I place a ceramic plate on top of the mug to act as a makeshift lid to trap heat inside.

Serving Tip

  • I mentioned throughout the post that this small batch brookie bar recipe makes 8 bars, or 2 large bakery-style brookies. To make 8 brookies, unmold the bars from the pan and slice them lengthwise. Hold the two long slices together, and slice them into quarters crosswise. This will create 8 brookie bars. For 2 large bakery-style brookie bars, simply slice the unmolded brookie bar block into two halves crosswise.

Video Tutorial

Use the video player below to watch my Instagram Story tutorial on how to make these small batch brookie bars! The arrows to the left and right of the frame allow you to skip through the different recipe steps. You can also hit the “pause” or “enlarge” buttons on the upper right hand side of the frame to pause or enlarge the frames accordingly.


Alternatively, head to my Instagram profile to watch these Stories on mobile! The circles underneath my bio indicate saved Instagram Story highlights for various recipes. Click on one of the circles to play the video tutorial for the recipe. You may need to swipe left or right to find this brookie bars recipe.

small batch brookie bars
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Get the Recipe: Small Batch Brookie Bars Recipe

Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 25 minutes
Bake Time: 50 minutes
Total: 1 hour 25 minutes
Servings: 8 bars
Author: Michelle Lopez
These small batch brookie bars are made from a combination of chewy, all cocoa powder brownies and fudgy chocolate chip cookies! The recipe is small batch and made in a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan. It makes 8 brookie bars, enough for 2 to 4 people!
(4.42 stars) 24 reviews
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Ingredients

For the Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough

  • ½ cup plus 1 Tablespoon (2.55 ounces or 72 grams) all-purpose flour
  • ¼ teaspoon baking soda
  • ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
  • 3 Tablespoons (1.5 ounces or 43 grams) unsalted butter
  • ⅓ cup tightly packed (2.5 ounces or 71 grams) light OR dark brown sugar
  • 1 large egg yolk
  • ¼ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • ½ cup (3 ounces or 85 grams) bittersweet, dark (between 60% to 70% cacao) chocolate, OR semisweet chocolate chips

For the Brownie Batter

  • ¾ cup (5.25 ounces or 149 grams) granulated sugar
  • ⅓ cup (1.5 ounces or 43 grams) all-purpose flour
  • ⅓ cup (1 ounce or 28 grams) Dutch-processed OR natural unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted if necessary
  • ¼ cup (1 ounce or 28 grams) confectioners' sugar, sifted if necessary
  • ½ teaspoon kosher salt
  • 4 Tablespoons (2 ounces or 57 grams) unsalted butter
  • 1 large egg
  • ¼ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 Tablespoons (.5 ounces or 14 grams) boiling water
  • flaky salt, for garnish

Equipment

  • a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan
  • 2 heatproof medium bowls
  • a 1-Tablespoon cookie dough scoop
  • an offset spatula

Instructions
 

For the Small Batch Brookie Bars

  • Prep your oven and pans. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly spray a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan with cooking spray and line with parchment paper, leaving a 2-inch overhang on the pan's two long sides. Spray the parchment, too.
  • Make the chocolate chip cookie dough. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt.
  • Melt the butter in a medium, heatproof bowl in 15- to 20-second intervals, using a heatproof rubber spatula to stir as needed. Pour the brown sugar over the melted butter and mix with a heatproof rubber spatula until just combined. When melted, add the egg yolk and vanilla and mix until just combined. Gradually mix in the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Add the chocolate and mix until evenly distributed throughout.
  • Start assembling the brookie bars. Use a 1-Tablespoon cookie dough scoop to portion half of the cookie dough into balls, dropping each ball randomly into the prepared loaf pan as you go. Gently press down on each cookie dough ball. Reserve the other half of the cookie dough for the brookie bar topping.
  • Make the brownie batter. In a medium bowl, whisk together the granulated sugar, flour, cocoa powder, confectioners' sugar, and salt.
  • Melt the butter in a medium, heatproof bowl in 15- to 20-second intervals, using a heatproof rubber spatula to stir as needed. When melted, add the egg and vanilla and mix until just combined. Gradually mix in the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Add the water and mix until just combined.
  • Finish assembling the brookie bars. Pour the batter into the prepared pan with the cookie dough and use an offset spatula to smooth the top, covering the cookie dough pieces. Sprinkle the top of the batter with generous pinches of the remaining chocolate chip cookie dough. Gently press down on the pieces to meld them into the brownie batter.
  • Bake the brookie bars. Bake for 50 to 55 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the center of the brownies comes out with a few crumbs attached. Check the bars around 30 minutes into the Bake Time—if the cookie dough is browning too quickly, cover the pan with a loose sheet of aluminum foil. Cool completely on a wire rack before slicing.
  • Serve and store. Run a butter knife or offset spatula along the edges of the pan and use the overhanging parchment as handles to lift the brookie bars out of the pan and onto a cutting board. Follow the instructions in the baker's notes to slice into 8 petite squares, or 2 large bakery-style bars. Garnish with flaky salt and serve. The brookie bars can be stored in an airtight container or zip-top bag at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Did you make this recipe?Please leave a star rating and review in the form below. I appreciate your feedback, and it helps others, too!

This post was last updated on 10/11/2020.

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