These vegan s’mores cookie bars are the best flavors of the campfire, without any of the mess!
The last few years have found most of us spending quite a bit more time at home. And with all that time at home, many of us worked on home improvement projects, trying to make the most of our space. Our family’s pandemic project was reclaiming our back yard. We dug out (live) wires that had once powered up a hot tub (thanks former owners!), and removed a concrete curb that ran 18″ deep, zig zagging throughout our yard. And, like many, we got a Solo Stove fire pit! The boys have loved family fire pit nights—mostly because they can roast obscene amounts of Dandies marshmallows over the fire and make s’mores. I enjoy the roasted marshmallows too, but s’mores are always a little too messy for my liking. Enter: S’mores Cookie Bars!
Vegan S’mores Cookie Bars
S’mores at their core are a pretty simple recipe: roasted marshmallow + chocolate + graham cracker. Insert joke here about how all three walked into a bar and became a S’mores Cookie Bar! But that’s kind of what happened! David had recently made chocolate chip cookies in a sheet pan rather than scooping into individual cookies to share with his school friends and I thought it was just the perfect easy treat to bring to some upcoming teacher appreciation lunches. Jonny’s school’s appreciation week featured a camping theme, so I swapped out the ingredients in my Macadamia Coconut Chocolate Chunk Cookies for some s’mores flavors and these S’mores Cookie Bars were born!
What ingredients do you use in a S’mores Cookie Bar?
The marshmallows and chocolate chunks were no brainers. What stumped me was how to get graham cracker flavor into a cookie. I thought about using wheat germ, like in my Homemade Graham Crackers. And I considered chunks of actual graham crackers. And then I remembered my favorite childhood graham cracker cereal! The cereal bits are pretty crunchy on the first day, and as the bars sit on the counter they get slightly chewy in the best way. I really love how they turned out!
Sort of Like a Blondie Bar
In theory, blondie bars are supposed to be non-chocolate brownies. But in reality I think they are more like a chocolate chip cookie….minus the chocolate chips. Right? Sort of chewy, gooey, with classic cookie flavor. These s’mores bars have a similar feel to a blondie bar. The batter puffs up a bit in the oven while they bake. When they finish cooking I do the “drop method” and smack the cookie sheet on the stove top a couple of times to deflate the cookie bars. This contributes to their gooey, chewy texture.
Sheet Pan Cookies
I bake these in a 9×12″ sheet pan. I believe you could bake these in a glass baking dish, though the timing might change a bit, so keep an eye on them if you choose to do that, and also leave a note in the comments letting me know how it works. The batter is very stiff so I just do my best to squish it across the pan. As they bake, the batter softens and spreads. I always sprinkle a few more marshmallows over the pan before baking to make sure that there are some roasted golden marshmallows on top—we eat with our eyes first!
More yummy desserts you will love!
These desserts are perfect for sharing at summer parties!
- Vegan Texas Sheet Cake
- Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream Bars with Cookie Crust
- Perfect Brownies
- Strawberry Shortcake Ice Cream Bars
- Vegan Blueberry Crisp with Almond Topping (Gluten Free)
- Chocolate Peppermint Vegan Rice Crispy Treats
Camp Themed Treats
While these s’mores cookie bars aren’t cooked over the campfire, they have a very camp like feel to them! To really up the camping feel try some of these foil wrapped recipes below!
Let’s Make Vegan S’mores Cookie Bars!
Are you ready to make vegan s’mores cookie bars? You’re less than an hour away from these gooey, chewy cookie treats! Leave me a note in the comments below and let me know how they turn out!
Vegan S'mores Cookie Bars
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups (365 grams) all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 sticks vegan butter (1 cup, I like Earth Balance)
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 Ener-G vegan egg (1 1/2 teaspoons Ener-G powder + 2 Tablespoons water)
- 1 Tablespoon water
- 1 cup graham cracker cereal (I like Cascadian Farm)
- 1 cup vegan mini marshmallows (I like Dandies)
- 1 cup chocolate chunks (I like Enjoy Life)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350º. Line a 9x12" baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a medium sized bowl, mix together the all purpose flour, the baking soda, and the salt. Set aside.
- In your mixer cream together the butter, sugars, vanilla, Ener-G egg (I don't pre-mix the egg, I just add the powder and water directly to the bowl), and additional Tablespoon of water. Mix until well combined and "fluffy."
- Add the dry flour mix to the butter mixture, a little bit at a time. I mix it in 3 additions.
- Add the graham cracker cereal, marshmallows, and chocolate chunks to the mixer. The batter will be very stiff at this point. If you have a powerful stand mixer like a Kitchen Aid you can give it a few stirs to incorporate. If not, stir in the ingredients by hand. It's ok if they're not fully incorporated—as the cookies bake they will all hold together.
- Scoop the stiff batter onto the prepared baking sheet. Be sure that it is distributed evenly, although it will not "spread" with a spatula (it will spread while it bakes).
- Sprinkle a few extra marshmallows across the top of the cookie bars.
- Bake at 350º for 35 minutes. The cookies will be very soft when you remove them from the oven, but will continue cooking with residual heat while they cool. Give the baking sheet a good smack on the counter to "deflate" the cookie bars—this will help to give them a chewy texture.
- Allow to cool fully before cutting. Cut into squares, serve, and enjoy! Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days for best texture.
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