Candy Cookie Bars

5 from 6 votes

Candy Cookie Bars! Two layers of gooey chocolate chip cookie dough stuffed with the candy of your choice! The perfect dessert recipe to use up that Halloween Candy or adapt them for any holiday!

Prep Time5

Cook Time30

Total Time35

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Diet: Gluten Free

Servings: Bars

Author: Laura

Cost: $4

Equipment

Ingredients

½ cup butter (softened)
½ cup granulated sugar
½ cup light brown sugar (packed)
1 large egg
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour*
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon sea salt
1 cup chocolate chips
25 Miniature Reese’s Cups (or 9 full size - or any other candy of your choosing)!

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. and line a 9x9” baking pan with parchment paper
and lightly grease. Set aside.
In a small bowl, mix together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
In the bowl of a standing mixer, cream together butter, light brown sugar and granulated sugar until well combined.
Add egg and vanilla to the butter/sugar mixture and beat until combined.
Add dry ingredients and beat until all the ingredients are thoroughly combined.
Add chocolate chips and mix until evenly distributed.
Press a little less than half of the dough into the bottom of your prepared baking pan, leaving about a ½ inch gap between the cookie dough and the side of the pan (it expands during baking)
Place Reese’s cups (or any other candy of your choosing) evenly spaced on top of the first layer of dough.
Top with the remaining cookie dough, making sure to completely cover the candy on both the top and sides.
Bake for 25-30 minutes, until the top is golden brown.
Let the bars cool in the pan for 30 minutes. Use the parchment paper to lift the cookie bars out of the pan, then cut into squares and serve.

Video

Notes

Note: you can double this recipe and bake it in a 9x13" baking dish.

Ingredient Substitutions

All-Purpose Flour. If you need a gluten-free version...simply substitute Gluten-Free All Purpose Flour for the regular flour and choose gluten-free candy.
Butter. I use salted butter, but unsalted butter works great too.
Chocolate Chips. Both mini and regular chocolate chips work well in this recipe!
Candy. Choose your favorite candy. I recommend sticking with chocolatey varieties, but the sky's the limit. Here are some candy suggestions:
- Reese's, Twix, Snickers, Rolos, Hershey Kisses, M&Ms, You favorite chocolate bars!, Reese's Pieces, Peanut butter Chips, 3 Musketeers, Milky Way, etc.

Store

These candy cookie bars keep well in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days, or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. I suggest slightly reheating them in the microwave for about 5-10 seconds to restore their fresh-from-the-oven gooeyness before enjoying.

Freeze

To freeze, let the bars cool completely. Wrap them tightly in plastic wrap then store in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 2 months.

Nutrition