Unicorn Bars Recipe
These super fun unicorn bars recipe makes soft, cake-like bars, filled with lots of sprinkles and topped with fluffy buttercream icing and some more rainbow sprinkles for garnish.
It’s a super fun dessert, ideal for birthday parties, a baby shower (dye the frosting with pink food coloring instead if it’s a girl!) or just for the entire family to enjoy!
With all the unicorn craze, my daughters asked if I could make a rainbow and unicorn party for them, with magical unicorns and colorful desserts. I immediately thought these would be the perfect fit!
I made them along some soft sugar cookies, funfetti cupcakes and obviously two vanilla cakes with lots of bright colors and full of sprinkles, for which I used my doctored cake mix recipe. These were gone in no time!
Ingredients you’ll need to make this fun treat
- All-purpose flour. Measured using a spoon, scooping the flour into the measuring cup without compacting it
- Cornstarch. Helps “soften” the flour
- Baking soda. Gives softness and airiness
- Sugar. Sweetens your bars
- Butter. Unsalted and at room temperature
- Salt. Enhances flavors
- Egg + egg yolk. At room temperature so they mix more evenly with the rest of the ingredients
- Sour Cream. At room temperature; helps giving moisture and softening the bars
- Milk. Full fat and at room temperature
- Vanilla extract. Good quality goes a long way!
- Powdered sugar. Sifted, to avoid a lumpy buttercream
- Sprinkles. Rainbow Jimmies for the batter and any sprinkles of your choice for decoration. Do not use nonpareils for the batter, they bleed into the batter and you could end up with weird colored bars
For the exact amounts and full recipe take a look at the recipe card below!
How to make these unicorn bars recipe
Start by lining the bottom and sides of a 9×13 inch baking pan with parchment paper or grease and dust with flour a square baking dish, and set aside. Pre-heat the oven to 350 F
On a separate bowl mix the dry ingredients (flour, cornstarch, baking soda). On a large mixing bowl mix sugar, butter, and salt, until no lumps are visible and butter is creamed.
Add in egg and egg yolk, sour cream, milk and vanilla extract and mix until combined.
Mix in the dry ingredients with a spatula, being careful to not over mix the dough. Fold in 1/2 Cup sprinkles and pour into prepared pan, spreading evenly using the back of a spoon.
Bake for 20-24 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let cool completely.
For the frosting, cream butter with an electric mixer in high speed until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla extract, sifted powdered sugar and salt, and start beating in low, then turning the speed up.
Add a few drops of blue food coloring for a colorful frosting, one drop at a time, until reaching desired shade (or a different color of your choice), and beat until frosting is creamy and color is homogeneous.
Frost the completely cooled bars, then decorate with extra sprinkles, mini marshmallows or white chocolate chips (or all 3 of them!), and cut into bars.
Can I use canned frosting instead?
Yes, you can definitely buy a canned vanilla buttercream or cream cheese frosting and use it as is or color it with any color of your choice.
Can I freeze my unicorn bars?
Definitely! I made them 1 week before the party, following all of the instructions above.
After baked and frosted, you need to place one layer of bars in an air tight container, freeze for 30 minutes or until frosting is hardened, place a piece of parchment paper on top of the first layer and place a second layer of bars on top.
Repeat as needed. Freeze for up to 1 month.
How to store this easy treat
Store them at room temperature in an air tight container and away from any heat source for up to 3 days.
Here’s a video of these delicious unicorn bars with their fluffy frosting so you can see up-close texture and consistency.
Follow this link if you’re looking for more Brownies and bars recipes, or click the links below for some fun, full or color recipes, perfect for a birthday party:
Funfetti Sandwich Cookies with Raspberry Filling
Sugar Cookie bars with Cream Cheese frosting
If you make this recipe, please be sure to give it a star rating and leave a comment!
Unicorn Bars Recipe
Ingredients
Bars
- 2 Cups all-purpose flour
- 2 Tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 3/4 Cup granulated sugar
- 1 Cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 egg + 1 egg yolk room temperature
- 1/4 Cup sour cream room temperature
- 1/4 Cup full fat milk room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/2 Cup jimmies sprinkles
Buttercream
- 1 Cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 4 1/2 Cups powdered sugar sifted
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- Blue food coloring optional
Instructions
Bars:
- Start by lining the bottom and sides of a 9×13 inch baking pan with parchment paper or grease and dust with flour a square baking dish, and set aside. Pre-heat the oven to 350 F
- On a separate bowl mix the dry ingredients (flour, cornstarch, baking soda). On a large mixing bowl mix sugar, butter, and salt, until no lumps are visible and butter is creamed. Add in egg and egg yolk, sour cream, milk and vanilla extract and mix until combined.
- Mix in the dry ingredients with a spatula, being careful to not over mix the dough. Fold in 1/2 Cup sprinkles and pour into prepared pan, spreading evenly using the back of a spoon. Bake for 20-24 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let cool completely.
Buttercream:
- Cream butter with an electric mixer in high speed until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla extract, sifted powdered sugar and salt, and start beating in low, then turning the speed up. Add a few drops of blue food coloring for a colorful frosting, one drop at a time, until reaching desired shade (or a different color of your choice), and beat until frosting is creamy and color is homogeneous.
- Frost the completely cooled bars, then decorate with extra sprinkles, mini marshmallows or white chocolate chips (or all 3 of them!), and cut into 24 bars
