Loaded Cookie Bars (with Leftover Christmas Candy!)

Preheat the oven to 350ºF/180ºC and grease and line an 8×8 inch square pan.

Place the candy/biscuits into a large bowl and crush roughly with the end of a rolling pin. If you have solid chocolate, chop it roughly and then add into the large bowl. Reserve some candy to sprinkle on the top, if you’d like.

Add the all purpose flour, bread flour, cornstarch and baking soda into the large bowl and mix briefly with a spoon/spatula until the candy is coated with flour. Leave to one side.

Place the butter and sugars into a large bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer and beat until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes on medium-high speed.

Add in the egg and vanilla extract and mix until well incorporated and smooth. Add in the flour and candy mix and mix on low until you have a thick cookie dough. Tip the cookie dough into the greased pan and smooth over with a spatula/spoon. Sprinkle any remaining candy/chocolate on the top and lightly press into the dough.

Place in the oven for 15-20 mins until risen, the edges are lightly golden and an inserted skewer into the middle still comes out with some crumbs on. Leave to cool completely in the pan.

Once cooled, remove from pan and slice into 9-12 bars. Store in an airtight container, at room temperature, for up to 5 days.

Note: I used 1/2 cup roughly crushed chocolate biscuits, 2x Cadbury Crunchie bars, 2x Cadbury Caramel bars, 2x mini bags Cadbury buttons & 2x small Cadbury chocolate bars, but used the buttons to sprinkle on the top.