These Salted Dark Chocolate Pistachio Cookie Bars are a super easy blondie bar recipe stuffed with dark chocolate and pistachios! A sprinkling of flaked salt on top gives these bars an irresistible sweet and salty combination!

Cookie bars are so easy to whip up and bake, but we don’t make them nearly enough around here. So, the last time that I was in the mood for cookies, I took the easy route.

Instead of making a few batches of cookies, I pressed the dough into a baking dish. Before long, these Salted Dark Chocolate Pistachio Cookie Bars were coming out of the oven!

They were perfectly soft and chewy with a bit of nuttiness from the pistachios and sweetness from the dark chocolate chips. We like the sweet and salty combination, so right before baking we sprinkled a bit of flaked sea salt over the dough. 

The result was a thick, chewy cookie bar filled with gooey chocolate and crunchy pistachios!

It was hard to wait for the chocolate to cool completely, so we dug in while the bars were still warm and weren’t disappointed. (While they are a bit messier to cut when warm, the gooey chocolate is definitely worth it!)

What makes these cookies even better is that they were made to bring awareness to Cookies For Kids’ Cancer.

I’m excited to participate in this Valentine’s event again. This is the sixth year for our event, and we want to continue to make a difference in the fight against pediatric cancer.

Cancer is the #1 cause of death of children by disease in the U.S. While there are 40,000 U.S. children actively battling cancer right now, the National Cancer Institute’s budget for childhood cancer is less than 4%!

With the ongoing pandemic, children are still being diagnosed with cancer. It’s imperative that we raise awareness and continue to raise funds to fund the ongoing pediatric cancer research.

Help us make a difference by donating to Cookies for Kids’ Cancer!

Our goal is to raise at least $3000, because these three companies: OXO, Mediavine and Dixie Crystals have each pledged to match our donations raised through this campaign up to $3000! So when we raise $1, it turns into $4!

Thank you to so many of you who have already donated. Please help us reach our goal so we can get the full matching donations and help us make an even bigger difference!

Donate here today. (Thank you!)

How to Make Salted Dark Chocolate Pistachio Blondies

Start by preheating your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Next, spray with non-stick cooking spray or line with a parchment paper, an 8×8 inch or 9×9 inch baking dish.

The bars pictured were made in an 8×8 inch dish. If you like your bars a little thinner, bake in a 9×9 inch dish.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, or with an electric hand mixer in a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar, and sugar.

Add in the eggs and vanilla extra, and beat until creamy. Don’t be afraid to let the mixer run for a bit so the mixture gets nice and creamy.

In a medium bowl, whisk together white whole wheat flour, baking powder, and salt until combined.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, and beat until combined.

Add in the dark chocolate and chopped pistachios. Dough will be somewhat thick, and you may find that your mixer gets a bit bogged down. Finish mixing with a sturdy spoon.

Press dough into the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Try to evenly press the dough into the pan to ensure that you get an even thickness of your bars.

Dough will be somewhat sticky. Lightly spraying the bottom of a glass, or your hands, will help with spreading the dough.

Sprinkle with the toppings of more dark chocolate and chopped pistachios. Top with flaked sea salt. (If you don’t like the sweet and salty combination, these bars still taste great without the salt!)

Bake for 20-25 minutes if using a 9×9 inch baking dish or 25-30 minutes if using an 8×8 inch baking dish, or until the tops of the bars are just starting to turn light golden brown.

Do not over-bake if you want gooey bars. If you prefer a more cake-like texture, bake for the entire time.

Remove baking dish to a wire rack to cool for 15 to 20 minutes before cutting into bars. You can cut the bars sooner. Just know that the chocolate will still be melty and can make the cutting process a bit of mess (the bars will be really good though!).

Store any leftover cookie bars in an airtight container.

Tips for Making Salted Dark Chocolate Pistachio Cookie Bars

• Don’t like dark chocolate? Try using milk chocolate or white chocolate instead.
• Feel free to leave the flaked sea salt off if you don’t have any. The bars will still taste great.
• You can make these bars in either an 8×8 inch dish (like the bars pictured) or a 9×9 inch baking dish for thinner bars. 
• For even thickness of bars throughout, make sure to smooth the batter once you have it in the pan. I like to use an offset spatula or the bottom of a glass for this.

More Cookie Bar recipes to try!

• One Bowl Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Bars
• Frosted Lemon Sour Cream Cookie Bars
• Chocolate Chip Bars