Coconut Lime Sugar Cookie Bars

These Coconut Lime Cookies Bars are soft, chewy, and covered with coconut lime buttercream frosting. They’ll soon be a family favorite, perfect for any time of year and all sorts of occasions.

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These Coconut Lime Cookies are the absolute best sugar cookie bars. They are dense and chewy rather, than crunchy and cakey, and covered in a whipped buttercream frosting made with the incredible flavor combo of coconut and lime.

Bar cookies are great because you can make a lot of them quickly – no need to individually portion before baking. Once finished, you just slice and serve. This makes them perfect for an after-school snack, potluck, or bake sale.

If more of the best cookie bar recipes is what you need, we’ve got you covered.

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Ingredients You Will Need

Flour – all-purpose flour works great for these cookie bars.
Baking Soda – this helps to keep the dough nice and soft and allows the cookies to rise slightly in the oven.
Salt – salt helps balance all of the flavors.
Butter – your butter should be softened to room temperature before making the dough. If you forget to pull it out ahead of time, microwave gently for about 10 seconds at a time just until soft.
Sugar – you will need white granulated sugar for these cookie bars.
Vanilla Extract – pure vanilla extract has the best flavor.
Eggs – it helps to have your eggs at room temperature so that they don’t shock the butter when added to the dough. You can run them until warm water if needed.

Coconut Lime Buttercream

Butter – make sure your butter is soft for the buttercream, too.
Powdered Sugar – I like to use powdered sugar as a sweetener for frosting because it doesn’t have any grittiness.
Fresh Limes – you will need both the juice and zest from fresh limes.
Coconut Extract – this adds lots of coconut flavor with very little liquid.

Combine the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, and salt and set aside.
Mix the rest of the sugar cookie dough. In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the room temperature butter, sugar, and vanilla extract. Beat using the paddle attachment until light and fluffy – about 3 minutes. Slowly add the eggs, then beat on low until well combined, scraping down the sides as needed. Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and mix on low speed until combined. Don’t overmix.
Press dough into a baking sheet. Lightly spray a 12″ x 17″ baking sheet with nonstick spray (or line with parchment paper). Press the cookie dough into the bottom of the pan as evenly as possible.
Bake. Bake in a 325 degree preheated oven for 20-25 minutes ,or until just barely golden brown on the edges. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
Make the Coconut Lime Buttercream. In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the butter and beat using the paddle attachment until light and fluffy. Add the powdered sugar on low speed, then increase to medium to combine. Add the lime juice, lime zest, and coconut extract. Mix again until light and fluffy. Add a drop or two of green food coloring if desired.
Assemble the cookie bars. Spread the buttercream frosting evenly over the cooled cookie bars. Cut into bars or squares before serving. Enjoy!

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I bake these are regular sugar cookies instead?

Yes! If you would rather bake these as individual sugar cookies, just roll into 1″ balls and place about 1-2 inches apart on a baking sheet. Bake as directed in this recipe, adding 2-3 minutes to the baking time if necessary.

Should you store cookie bars in the fridge?

Because these cookie bars have a buttercream frosting, they should be stored in the fridge. They can sit out, however, for quite some time before needing to be refrigerated so they are perfect for serving at parties.

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Storing and Freezing

Room Temperature – If you want to store the baked cookie bars before frosting them, just place them in a container with a lid or a ziplock bag. They will stay fresh for a few days.
Refrigerator: store frosted cookie bars in the fridge for up to 3 days in an airtight container.
Freezer- If you haven’t tried this method, you’re missing out. Cookie bars freeze really well and are so fun to grab out of the freezer and enjoy. Let them thaw for a few minutes and you’ll have an extra chewy cookie bar to enjoy. Cookies can remain in the freezer, in an airtight container or freezer bag for up to 3 months.
Thaw- If you want to make them ahead of time, you can bake them in the cookie sheet, cover in a double layer of plastic wrap, and then pull them out of the freezer a couple of hours before you need them. If you’re using frosting, it’s best to frost the cookie bars when they are frozen, after you pull them out of the freezer.