This ooey gooey butter bars recipe is the stuff of legends. While the shortcut recipe (using boxed yellow cake mix) has been making rounds for years, it’s nothing compared to this homemade from-scratch butter bars. I promise it takes just a few extra steps (and a couple of minutes more) and you have an old-fashioned over-the-top dessert bar that tastes like it came straight from Grandma’s table. I’m excited to share this recipe treasure.

If you’ve never tried a gooey butter bar before, let me tell you about these rich and creamy layers. The bottom is soft and moist like a cake and it’s topped with a sweet custard-like cream cheese layer. Fun fact: because they’re so rich in flavor, they’re often called Neiman Marcus bars.

Keep reading for serving ideas, but these butter bars taste delicious no matter how you serve them. Let’s get baking!

Ingredients
Crust

2 ½ cups all purpose flour
1 ½ cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
3/4 cup butter at room temp
Filling:
8 oz cream cheese at room temp
3 large eggs
4 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions

Place the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, salt, butter, and eggs in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer on low just until a dough is formed. Line a 9×13 baking dish with foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray or just spray your pan directly with a good coating of cooking spray and leave out the foil part. (The foil makes it easier to remove the bars all at once and get nice clean cuts but it isn’t necessary).
Pat dough into bottom of prepared pan and set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, place cream cheese and beat until smooth and creamy. Add 3 eggs, vanilla, and powdered sugar and beat until well combined and smooth with no lumps. Pour over crust in pan.
Bake at 350 for about 50 minutes or until the top is golden brown. You’ll have to rely on them looking nice and golden rather than the traditional toothpick test as these are supposed to stay a little gooey in the middle. Allow to cool completely before cutting so the top layer can set a bit.
Notes

Hint: These are delicious warm but just not as pretty when you cut them that way. I suggest eating one warm and then letting the rest cool – but you didn’t hear that from me!
Nutrition
Calories: 209kcal