Soft Chewy Chocolate Bars (Printable)

Soft, chewy bars packed with chocolate chips, perfect for sharing without extra fuss.

# What You'll Need:

→ Dry Ingredients

01 - 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
02 - 1 teaspoon baking soda
03 - 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt

→ Wet Ingredients

04 - 1 cup unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
05 - 1 cup packed light brown sugar
06 - 1/2 cup granulated sugar
07 - 2 large eggs, at room temperature
08 - 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

→ Add-Ins

09 - 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

# How to Make It:

01 - Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a 9x13-inch baking pan with parchment paper, leaving an overhang for easy removal.
02 - In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt until evenly mixed.
03 - In a large bowl, whisk melted butter with brown sugar and granulated sugar until smooth and glossy.
04 - Add eggs one at a time into the wet mixture, whisking thoroughly after each addition; then stir in vanilla extract.
05 - Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients using a spatula, mixing just until combined to avoid overworking.
06 - Gently fold the semisweet chocolate chips into the batter ensuring even distribution.
07 - Spread the dough evenly into the prepared pan, smoothing the surface for an even thickness.
08 - Bake for 22 to 25 minutes until edges turn golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with moist crumbs.
09 - Allow bars to cool completely in the pan placed on a wire rack. Lift using parchment overhang and cut into 16 bars.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • No scooping or fussing with individual portions means you spend more time enjoying and less time baking.
  • The texture sits in that perfect sweet spot between crispy edges and chewy centers that feels indulgent every single time.
  • They're impossible to mess up, which means even on your worst baking day, you'll have something delicious to show for it.
02 -
  • Melting your butter first and letting it cool slightly changes everything—cold butter gets beaten into the dough and creates dense, cakey bars instead of the chewy texture you're after.
  • Don't skip the cooling step no matter how impatient you are; warm bars taste good but fall to pieces when you cut them, and you'll end up with crumbled bits instead of neat bars.
03 -
  • Invest in a good chocolate chip—it's the star of the show, and premium chips melt differently and taste noticeably better than bargain brands.
  • If your kitchen is warm, chill the dough for 15 minutes before spreading it into the pan; it spreads more easily and bakes more evenly.

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