leftover Halloween candy

It’s been 2 weeks since Halloween and I still have candy around the house… this is not a good thing! Maybe your kids still have candy and you want to do away with it, or like me, you have extra candy you didn’t give out and now you’re sneaking a piece every day and just wish it would disappear and not to your hips. Why not put it to good use for your Christmas baking? These cookies freeze well and the recipe can be cut in half or even doubled depending on how much candy you need to get rid of. If you don’t have Nutella on hand, just use a full cup of peanut butter, although the Nutella adds a grown-up edge to these big chewy cookies.

Halloween Candy Cookies

3 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup Nutella
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 eggs
20 REESE’S CUPS®, SNICKERS®, and/or MILKY WAY®s fun size bars, each cut in half
6 packages fun-size M&M’S®

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

In the bowl of a standing mixer combine sugars, butter, peanut butter, and Nutella and beat until well creamy.  Mix in vanilla and eggs until just combined.

Add flour mixture in two additions, and mix well. Shape a scant 1/4 cup of dough around each candy bar half, making sure the candy is completely covered. Place 4 inches apart on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper or a Silpat mat. Flatten slightly and place    3 M&M’S® on top of each.

Bake for about 15 minutes. Cool 5 minutes on the pan, then remove with a spatula to a rack to cool completely.

Makes 40 large cookies