Candy Bar Cookies: Try Them with Leftover Halloween Candy
Do you find yourself wondering what to do with leftover Halloween candy? Make these easy candy bar cookies! These babies are chewy with crispy edges and a caramelized, almost toffee-like flavor. The chopped candy bars make for a fun little surprise in every bite. They’re fun, easy, and a perfect way to practice cooking with kids!
Every holiday, we’re bombarded with candy! We eat it and try to not let the kids (or ourselves) overdo it, but there is always more candy. I’m guilty of buying it too. I’m a sucker for festive Reece’s! They’re the best stocking stuffers and easter basket fillers!
Halloween is when we end up with the most candy! Trick-or-treating is so much, and I have the best memories of dressing up for Halloween! My Granny lived in one of the go-to trick-or-treat neighborhoods, so it was always A BIG DEAL for my cousins and me.
If you’re looking for a fun way to use the leftover candy that shows up around holidays, these easy candy bar cookies do the trick! They are easy and fuss-free. No special techniques or hard-to-find ingredients. Just good old-fashioned cookies with chopped-up candy bars stirred in. They’re a perfect, fun recipe to make with the kids. My toddler can help choose the candy, pour, and mix! Older kids can practice measuring, and teenagers can make these by themselves.
This recipe makes a thin and chewy chocolate cookie. Since we’re using assorted chocolates, each batch will come out differently. I love that each bite contains a delicious, chocolatey surprise! Even though they aren’t perfectly consistent, they’re all delicious!
Ingredients
Assorted chocolate candy bars. I used fun-size bars, but you can use any chocolate candy you like! You’ll need to chop candy bars into pieces, but you can leave Reece’s Pieces and M&M’s whole.
These cookies require some baking basics for making a classic cookie dough. Flour, baking soda, salt, butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, egg, and vanilla.
You’ll also need to prepare the baking sheet to keep the cookies from sticking. You can use butter, cooking spray, or parchment paper.
How to make candy bar cookies
About an hour before you plan to bake, set out your butter to soften.
When you’re ready to make the cookies, go ahead and preheat your oven to 375℉. Prepare 2 sheet pans by lining them with parchment paper or greasing them. Then sort out your chocolates. In this batch I used Kit Kats, Twix, Reece’s, Snickers, Milky Way, M&M’s, and Reece Pieces.
Chop up the candy bars. If you’re using M&M’s or Reece Pieces, leave them whole.
Measure out 1 heaping cup of chopped candy. If you chop up too much, you’re kids will happily take care of that problem.
Whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt in a bowl and set it aside.
In a separate large mixing bowl, use a hand mixer to cream the butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar until light and fluffy. It will take about 3 minutes.
Add the egg and vanilla and mix it in.
Then, gradually add the flour mixture and continue mixing until it is incorporated.
Add the chopped candy bars and stir them in with a wooden spoon.
Scoop the cookie dough onto the prepared baking sheet into heaping tablespoonfuls, about 2 inches apart.
Bake the cookies at 375℉ for 8-10 minutes. Pull them when they are just starting to brown around the edges and the centers are still gooey.
How to store leftover cookies
Cool completely and store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
How to freeze candy bar cookies
Method 1: Make a Cookie Dough Roll
Make the cookie dough according to recipe instructions, then freeze it for at least 1 hour. Or up to 4 hours. This will make it easier to shape.
Now, roll out a sheet of plastic wrap and dump the cookie dough onto the plastic wrap. Use the plastic wrap to roll and shape the dough into a log that’s about 2 inches in diameter. Then, unroll it and discard the plastic wrap. Wrap the cookie dough log tightly in freezer paper and secure it with masking tape. Label and freeze.
When you’re ready to bake: Take it out of the freezer, unwrap it, and slice it into ½ inch slices. Place them on a greased or parchment-lined baking sheet and follow the recipe directions for baking. Increase the cooking time by a couple of minutes if baking from frozen.
Method 2: Freeze Pre-scooped Cookies
Follow the recipe directions up to placing the scoops of cookie dough on the prepared baking sheet, but do not bake. Place the baking sheet with unbaked cookies in the freezer until frozen solid. Once frozen, remove the cookie dough balls from the freezer and place them in a gallon-sized freezer bag. Label and freeze until ready to cook.
When you’re ready to bake: Remove the dough balls from the freezer and place them on a greased or parchment-lined baking sheet. Follow the recipe directions for baking. Increase the cooking time by a couple of minutes if baking from frozen.
Pro-tip: You do not need to space the cookie dough 2 inches apart if you’re freezing. Just place them so they’re not touching.
When to make candy bar cookies
These candy bar cookies are a fun recipe to make with kids! Make them anytime you find yourself with chocolate candy bars! For us, this happens after Halloween, holiday parades, Christmas, Valentine’s Day, and Easter.
What to do with leftover Halloween candy?
- Sort it out. Remove anything with damaged packaging and anything that is not safe or age-appropriate.
- Separate the chocolates from the other candy. The chocolate will absorb weird flavors if you leave it mixed with other candies. I keep an airtight container in my pantry specifically for individually wrapped chocolates!
- Make candy bar cookies. If you need to use a lot of chocolate candy bars, you can make several batches and freeze them for easy treats.
- Share the wealth! Leave a candy bowl out for guests. Take a bowl to the office. If you’re a teacher, take some candy to the classroom.
- Enjoy the season! Trick-or-treating days won’t last forever. Take time to enjoy celebrating with your kids. 🙂
More fun things to make with kids
PrintCandy Bar Cookies
These fun cookies use leftover candy bars to make thin, chewy, irresistible treats. They’re a perfect way to use Halloween candy, and kids can help!
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- plus 1 hour to soften the butter:
- Cook Time: 8 minutes
- Total Time: 23 minutes
- Yield: 2 dozen cookies 1x
- Category: Cookies
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 1 heaping cup of chopped candy bars*
- 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- First, pick out your chocolate candy bars. Unwrap them and chop them into pieces. Measure out 1 heaping cup of chopped candy and set it aside. If you chopped too much, your miniature chef will happily take care of the rest!
- Whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt in a mixing bowl and set aside.
- Add the brown sugar, granulated sugar, and softened butter to a large mixing bowl. Use a hand mixer fitted with the beater attachments to cream the butter and sugar using medium speed. Beat until the mixture is light and fluffy. It will take about 3 minutes.
- Add the egg and vanilla to the creamed butter and sugar and continue mixing to incorporate. Do not overmix.
- Gradually add the flour mixture, mixing it to form a sticky dough. Stop mixing as soon as the flour is mixed in.
- Dump the chopped candy bars into the dough and stir with a wooden spoon.
- Bake at 375℉ for 8-10 minutes. For chewy cookies, remove them from the oven while still very soft! They will firm up as they cool.
Notes
Cool completely and store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. Or follow the freezing instructions in the recipe post for later usage.
*use about 8 ounces of assorted chocolate candy. If using M&Ms or Reese’s Pieces, you can leave them whole.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
We have so much candy at our house! These are perfect and my kids love them.