Vanilla Lovers Cookie Bars

Most people can categorize themselves as a chocolate person or a vanilla person.  I happen to be the latter.  Don't get me wrong, I love chocolate.  Like, I really really love chocolate.  But if I'm faced with choosing between two desserts and one of them is vanilla and the other is chocolate, I'm gonna go for the vanilla option 8 out of 10 times.

So I created these cookie bars specifically for those who are just like me, those who have the same love affair with vanilla.  These bars start with a vanilla-infused Nilla wafer crust topped with soft vanilla blondies.  If that's not enough vanilla already, the blondies get sprinkled with big chunks of vanilla sandwich cookies, like Golden Oreos.

Then the whole thing gets a drizzle of melted vanilla chips.  I like to bake cookie bars until they are juuuust barely done so that they stay nice and soft in the center.  There's a super thin golden crust that forms on the top of the melt-in-your-mouth blondie center, and then at the bottom you have that sweet vanilla wafer crust.  Are you drooling yet?

Vanilla lovers rejoice - this cookie bar was made specifically and especially for you!  Enjoy!

Vanilla Lovers Cookie Bars

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• Author: Erin Browne
• Prep Time: 10 mins
• Cook Time: 35 mins
• Total Time: 45 mins
• Yield: 18-24 bars 1x

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Ingredients

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• Vanilla Wafer Crust
• 1 12oz box vanilla wafer cookies, crushed
• ½ cup unsalted butter, melted
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
• Blondie Layer
• 1 cup unsalted butter
• 4 large eggs
• 1 cup white sugar
• ½ cup light brown sugar, packed
• 2 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup vanilla baking chips, divided (you can use white chocolate chips)
• 10-12 Golden Oreos or vanilla sandwich cookies of choice, broken into large pieces.

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Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease a light metal 9x13 baking pan.
2. Vanilla Wafer Crust
3. Mix together melted butter, vanilla, and crushed cookies and press into the prepared pan, using the bottom of a glass or ramekin to really pack the crumbs in tight. Bake crust on center rack for about 10 minutes and allow to cool.
4. Blondie Layer
5. In a saucepan, melt the butter on low heat and then remove from heat and add the vanilla chips. Cover and let stand for 5 minutes, and then stir until chips are melted and the mixture is smooth. Allow to cool.
6. In another bowl, beat eggs, sugar and vanilla.
7. Mix in the butter and vanilla mixture along with the flour and salt. Mix until just combined. Pour the batter over the cooled vanilla wafer crust. Top with the Golden Oreo cookie pieces.
8. Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes, until top is golden and a toothpick comes out with a few moist crumbs. Oven time may vary, do not over bake.
9. Place remaining vanilla chips into the corner of a plastic Ziploc bag. Microwave in 30 second increments, kneading chips with your hands after each one, until melted. Use scissors to snip off a tiny corner of the bag and drizzle the vanilla over the top of the bars.

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