Heath Bar Cookies are my spin on an old recipe from Marcel Desaulniers called Mrs. D's Chocolate Chip Cookies. I found it in his book Death By Chocolate Cookies, while looking for 
Mrs. D's Chocolate Chip Cookies
Desaulniers (Mrs. D. is his mother) says this is his favorite recipe in the book, and I can see why. They are beautiful cookies - large, thick, sturdy and packed with chocolate chips and dark brown sugar. Fuzz loved them, and not just because the cookies are as big as her head.
Use Lots of Chocolate!
This cookie recipe is well balanced. The dough itself isn't very rich, but it's balanced out by a more than generous portion of chocolate chips and my theory is that if you don't add the full 12 oz or perhaps even more chocolate chips, the cookies won't be quite the same....perhaps even, lackluster. Also, I think you have to make them big (like the recipe instructs) or you won't get the proper texture.
Heath Cookies Recipe
So I loved the crispy, almost hard texture of the cookies, but thought I'd take it a step further and throw in some Heath bar chunks. The Heath bar addition was great and I'd do it again, but I'd also make the Heath cookie recipe with just chips and maybe some walnuts.
One last note. These would be excellent for a bake sale. In the book, Desaulnier says his mother used to ship them to Vietnam, so no doubt they keep well. Plus, they are easy to wrap once they've set and cooled. If you are crafty, you could come up with a lot of fun ways to package these.
Heath Bar Cookies aka Mrs. D's Chocolate Chip Cookies
4 oz unsalted butter, cool, cut up (114 grams)
1 cup packed dark brown sugar (200 grams)
1 large egg
2-3 teaspoons rum (14 ml)
¾ to 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon salt
¾ teaspoon baking soda
2 cups all-purpose unbleached flour (260 grams)
12 ounces semisweet or extra dark chocolate chips (I used extra dark)
2 oz Heath bar, cut up (56 grams)
Cream the butter and brown sugar with an electric mixer for a full 4 minutes – I used a stand mixer with a paddle attachment for this. Add egg, rum and vanilla and beat on medium for 1 minute until combined. Scrape sides. Beat in the salt and baking soda. Scrape sides again. With mixer on low or by hand, gradually add flour. Stir until almost fully mixed; mix in the chips. At this point, you can stir in the Heath chunks or you can press them into the cookie later so you can control how many Heath chunks per cookie.
Divide dough into 3 equal parts, then divide each of those parts into 4 to make 12 big mounds of dough. Shape into balls and chill for about an hour or until you intend to bake the cookies.
When ready to bake, preheat oven to 300 degrees F.
Arrange the cookies 6 to parchment or foil-lined cookie sheet and press them down slightly to make thick discs. Press a few chunks of Heath bar into each cookie (if you haven't mixed it in). Bake one sheet on the top rack and the other on the center rack, swapping racks halfway through the cook-time and rotating the cookies sheets 180 degrees. Bake time should be 25 to 28 minutes. If the dough is cold, you might want to bake them for up to 32 minutes. The original recipe said not to over-bake, but I kept over-baking mine on purpose because I liked the crunch.
1 dozen huge cookies
Recipe
Heath Bar Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 stick unsalted butter, softened (114 grams)
- 1 cup dark brown sugar (210 grams)
- 2 teaspoons rum
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 large egg, room temperature (50 grams)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- 2 cups all-purpose flour, weigh or spoon into cup and level (260 grams)
- 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
- 2 oz Heath Bar
Instructions
- Cream the butter and brown sugar with an electric mixer for a full 4 minutes. Add egg, rum and vanilla and beat on medium for 1 minute until combined. Scrape sides. Beat in the salt and baking soda. Scrape sides again.
- With mixer on low or by hand, gradually add flour. Stir until almost fully mixed; mix in the chips. At this point, you can stir in the Heath chunks or you can press them into the cookie later so you can control how many Heath chunks per cookie.
- Divide dough into 3 equal parts, then divide each of those parts into 4 to make 12 big mounds of dough. Shape into balls and chill for about an hour or until you intend to bake the cookies.
- When ready to bake, preheat oven to 300 degrees F.
- Arrange the cookies 6 to parchment or foil-lined cookie sheet and press them down slightly to make thick discs. Press a few chunks of Heath bar into each cookie (if you haven't mixed it in).
- Bake one sheet on the top rack and the other on the center rack, swapping racks halfway through the cook-time and rotating the cookies sheets. Bake time should be 25 to 28 minutes. If the dough is cold, you might want to bake them for up to 32 minutes.
Sue says
I saw these on your Pinterest board. I can't wait for an excuse to make them.
Anna says
Congratulations!
cami says
making them right now. prego cravings!
Kim says
I made these for my daughter's bake sale. They were great! Each cookie has 360 calories so I couldn't eat a whole one, but WOW!
Layla says
I was craving choclate chip cookies tonight and came across this recipe. This is what i call a Choclate Chip cookie! These are INCREDIBLE!!! I didn't have Heath bars so i substituted in pieces of chopped up choclate turtles (caramel, choclate, and nut candy). They were so thick and the texture beats any other homemade cookie i've ever made. I highly recommend this recipe. I will keep this one for sure and make it for friends and family.
Fallon says
Oh yum!
Sweets at Vicky's says
I laughed so hard when you categorized this as 'huge and fat'. It's funny how I love everything huge and fat (brownies, chocolate cookies, stuffed toys) but the world keeps telling me tiny and skinny is the way to go. Thanks for a good laugh anna!
Anna says
Sorry, but I've never made black forest as cupcakes. I like that you want to go the scratch route, though. Since that's the case, you might want to just make scratch chocolate cakes, make a hole each cupcake and fill it with homemade or storebought cherry filling.
Shannon says
Thanks for the tip, Anna. I'll let you know if I try that recipe. I tend to steer away from cake-mix recipes, but that recipe has so many good reviews and certainly sounds easy!
Anna says
Shannon, I've never made black forest cake as cupcakes but maybe you could try using that old recipe where you combine cake mix with cherry pie filling. Something like this, but in cupcake form.
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Quick-Black-Forest-Cake/Detail.aspx
CL, these are even crunchier on Day 2. Also, it depends on how long you bake them. In the book MD says you can bake them at 325 for about 20 minutes for a softer cookie.
Jennifer, I think the coconut rum sounds kind of good!
Karen, I love you spontaneous decision to make these cookies. Also, I'm happy to hear the Heath BIts didn't make the cookies too sweet. Maybe the pecans balanced them out? I used Heath bars, but I used big chunk.
Karen says
I was about to bake blondies to use up some heath bits when I clicked on over here and saw these and just had to switch gears. Mine look exactly like yours! I tossed in a handful of pecans and used about 1/2 cup of heath bits. Love 'em! Thanks!
Robin says
I've been making Mrs. D's cookies for a few years now, but never thought to add the Heath bar. Thanks for a new idea to a favorite recipe!
snooky doodle says
these look delicious! would love to try these 🙂
Katrina says
I need one of those or I can't go on, I can't clean anymore, dejunk anymore, I'm done. 😉
Hey, I posted about our French Silk Pie throwdown today. (I used the ultrafine sugar recipe, but used 2 oz. chocolate instead of 1 1/2. It was actually a great pie!
dani says
that is one BIG cookie!
Lisa Ernst says
This is creating some nostalgia in me for the Levain bake off that so many cookie bloggers got involved in! I see these aren't as buttery, but like you said, the chips make up for it. My personal rule of thumb is that the chips should be at least equal to the flour by volume: 2 cups flour to 2 cups (or more) chips. Anything less and there's too much cookie without chips. LOL. Personally I love a big cookie!
Alexandra says
Whoa! Those cookies are HUGE.
Jennifer says
Wow, those look great. I have a bag of those heath bar bits, I think those would work, as long as I "upped" the chocolate amount (since the bag I has is just "bits 'o brickle, no chocolate.) The only rum I have on hand, though, is coconut... I wonder if the taste would be offputting, or if the coconuty flavor would meld?
C L says
I have had this recipe in my "to make" file for years but hadn't tried it because I was concerned the cookies might be too crunchy. However, you and Fuzz have changed my mind and convinced me to give these a go. 🙂
Chris Mower says
These looks SOOO good. Good thing I already ate breakfast, or I'd be making these.
Steph says
I really like the colour of those. They look like they have the perfect texture!
Shannon says
These look really good. I love the texture of big, thick chocolate chip cookies, plus you feel satisfied eating just one!
I was just searching your site for black forest cake recipes. I know you've made a few, but I am looking to try making them in cupcake form. Do you have any suggestions?