Heath Bar Cookies
I used to make these cookies back in college, and I can’t believe I forgot about them until recently because they are incredible. These Heath Bar cookies are absolutely loaded with the crunchy texture of Heath bits and delicious chocolate, and they have crispy edges and soft and chewy centers. My whole family is obsessed with these yummy Heath cookies, and once you make them, I think you’ll be obsessed too!
If you love Heath Bar candy, check out these Chocolate Cake Cookies that feature crumbled Heath bars on top, or my copycat Crumbl Mom’s Recipe Cookies which also feature toffee bits in the dough. If more toffee flavor is what you’re after, I think my Banoffee Pie will hit the spot! For cookies with similar flavors, Oatmeal Butterscotch Cookies, Butterscotch Chocolate Chip Cookies, and 7 Layer Bar Cookies are some more delicious options.
Why This Recipe Works
- Loaded with Heath Bar bits. I feel like other Heath Bar cookie recipes just don’t have enough toffee OR chocolate. So in this Heath Bar cookie recipe, those crunchy toffee bits aren’t just mixed into the dough—we also press the tops of individual cookie dough balls into more Heath bits to get a nice chocolate and toffee top. It’s totally extra and I love it.
- Perfect texture. The addition of cornstarch as well as a bit of chill time makes for a chewy cookie with crisp edges and soft centers, just the way I like them.
- Balance of chocolate and toffee. These aren’t just Heath toffee cookies. These are Heath Bar chocolate chip cookies. I love the combination of chocolate and buttery toffee so I used the chocolate-covered Heath pieces for this cookie as well as a smidge of mini chocolate chips. You could also use Skor bits or Heath Bits o’ Brickle if you prefer more toffee and less chocolate.
Ingredient Notes
- Brown sugar: Brown and white sugars serve different purposes in cookies when it comes to the way cookies rise, spread, and bake overall. For the most delicious cookie, we’re amping up the toffee flavor of this Heath cookie recipe by using mostly brown sugar.
- Cornstarch: Adding cornstarch to cookies helps them be more tender and chewy.
- Kosher salt: The larger granules of kosher salt dissolve more slowly in the dough, allowing for more even distribution of the salt. If you only have fine table salt, be aware that it’s much saltier than kosher salt. I would only add a ½ teaspoon of fine salt.
- Heath toffee bits: The reason we make these cookies is for the crunchy toffee bits! I’m a chocolate lover, so I like the chocolate-coated Heath Bar bits, but if you prefer, you could use just plain toffee bits. Either way, these are amazing cookies for toffee lovers.
- Mini chocolate chips: Like I said, I loooove chocolate! I find that just a quarter cup of mini chocolate chips adds the right amount of chocolate without overwhelming the toffee for the perfect chocolate chip and Heath Bar cookies.
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Cream together wet ingredients. In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, or in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer, cream together 10 tablespoons of softened, unsalted butter with 1 cup packed brown sugar and ¼ cup granulated sugar. Once the softened butter and sugars are thoroughly combined, scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula and add 1 large room-temperature egg and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract. Mix to combine.
- Add dry ingredients. On top of the wet ingredients, add 1¾ cups of all-purpose flour, ½ teaspoon of cornstarch, ¾ teaspoon of baking powder, ½ teaspoon of baking soda, and ¾ teaspoon of kosher salt (or ½ teaspoon of fine salt). Use a fork to whisk the dry ingredients together as best you can, before turning on your stand or hand mixer to low speed. Mix wet and dry ingredients until partially combined.
- Add Heath bar bits and chocolate chips. To the partially mixed ingredients add 1¼ cups of chocolate-covered toffee bits and ¼ cup of mini chocolate chips. Mix until bits and chips are evenly distributed throughout the dough.
- Refrigerate dough. Cover the bowl and chill cookie dough in the fridge for 45 minutes. Chilling the dough will help the cookies not spread too much, so don’t skip this step!
- Prep your oven and pan. 20 minutes before you pull your dough out of the fridge (so, 25 minutes later), preheat your oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Dip cookies and bake. When your oven has preheated and your cookie dough is done chilling, make cookie dough balls the size of 2 tablespoons. I used a #30 cookie scoop for this. Add ½ cup of Heath bits to a small bowl or plate and dip the top of a ball of dough into the Heath bits before placing them on the lined cookie sheets, toffee bits side up. Makes 20 cookies. Bake cookies for 9-10 minutes, or until edges are set.
- Enjoy. Remove cookies from oven, sprinkle flaky sea salt on top if desired, and allow the cookies to cool on the pan for 5-10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Recipe Tips
This recipe for Heath Bar cookies uses chocolate covered toffee bits. If you want more toffee and less chocolate in your cookies, you can use Heath Bar Bits o’ Brickle or Skor Bar bits.
If you love a salty-sweet combo, some flaky sea salt sprinkled on top of the cookies right after they come out of the oven is delicious.
You can make these into smaller cookies, although the size is an important part of getting a soft cookie with crisp edges. If you do decrease the size of the cookie dough balls, start checking for cookie doneness around 7 minutes of bake time.
If for some reason you had to let the dough chill longer (been there), let it come to room temperature while you preheat the oven. This will give it time to get a little softer and easier to work with.
Cookies and milk are a classic for a reason, and these delicious Heath Bar cookies really are even better with a cold glass of milk!
Please note these cookies contain nuts! Heath Bars and Heath Bar bits contain small almond pieces.
Make Ahead, Sorting, Freezing
Make Ahead: You can make these cookies a day or two in advance, or chill the dough for up to 24 hours before baking.
Storing: Store leftover cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-4 days. If they last that long!
Freezing: Both the cookie dough and the baked cookies can be frozen, which is amazing because then you can always have cookies on hand! To freeze baked cookies, let them cool completely, then wrap each cookie individually in plastic wrap before placing in a ziplock bag or airtight container and putting them in the freezer. Cookies will stay good for 2 months in the freezer. To freeze the cookie dough, check out my post on Freezing Cookie Dough.
Recipe FAQs
Honestly there isn’t much of a difference between these two candy bars. Heath Bars are described as “English toffee” whereas Skor Bars are described as “butter toffee,” but I don’t know if I could tell the difference in a taste lineup! So, if you wanted to make these Skor Bar cookies…you totally could. Skor Bar bits aren’t typically chocolate-covered, but some people like Skor Bar toffee better.
You can absolutely buy regular Heath Bars and chop them up. It will require more work, but some larger chunks of toffee don’t sound so bad to me!
Despite the English toffee description, Heath Bars are an American invention. In 1928, a schoolteacher named L.S. Heath decided to go into the candy business with his two sons. Heath’s sons appear to have invented the candy bar. Skor Bars were invented by Hershey’s in the 1980s to compete with Heath Bars, which is a little funny when you learn that today, Hershey’s actually makes both candies!
More Candy Bar-Inspired Recipes
Heath Bar Cookies
Ingredients
- 10 tablespoons unsalted butter - softened to room temperature
- 1 cup brown sugar - packed
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 large egg - at room temperature
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
- 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 3/4 cups Heath toffee bits - divided
- 1/4 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
- Malden sea salt - for topping (optional)
Equipment
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment cream the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar on medium speed for 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Add the vanilla extract and large egg and mix again to combine.
- Add the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, and kosher salt. Use a fork or whisk to combine the top dry ingredients together. Then close the stand mixer and turn the mixer on low and mix until the dry ingredients are partially combined.
- Add 1 ¼ cups Heath toffee bits and ¼ cup mini chocolate chips and mix again until combined and evenly distributed. Cover the dough bowl with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for 45 minutes. This step allows the dough to firm up just a tad (but not so much that it’s difficult to scoop)… also prevents overspreading so I encourage you not to skip this step.
- 20 minutes prior to pulling the dough out of the refrigerator, preheat your oven to 375° F.
- When ready to bake use a 2 T cookie scoop (I used a #30) and roll into a ball. Dip the tops of each cookie into the remaining ½ cup of Heath toffee bits. Place each dough ball on a parchment lined baking sheet (toffee bit side up) keeping about 2 inches between each cookie. Bake 9-10 mins. Or until edges are set.
- Remove from oven, top with flaky sea salt (if desired) and let cool on pan for 5-10 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
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4 Comments on “Heath Bar Cookies”
Hi, Good morning. The Heath bar cookies sound so goooood! and I know will be a hit. I am wondering if the dough can be shaped into balls, put on a sheet pan and frozen then put into freezer bags to bake later. 😊
Jane, definitely! That is pretty much exactly the method we recommend 🙂 you’ll likely need to add 1-2 minutes of bake time if you bake the dough from frozen. Also, Whitney often does one extra step – flattening the dough balls slightly before freezing, rather than keeping them round. It’s a personal preference though!
This recipe is great!! Love the chewy texture from the cornstarch and the ratio of chocolate to toffee is perfect. Will DEFINITELY be making these again. 🙂
Hooray! I love these cookies so much, I’m glad to hear you loved them too!