Chunky mini egg cookie bars packed with Cadbury mini eggs and chocolate chips; these are a decadent and delicious treat for Easter!
After making this delicious Mini Egg Cheesecake and the Mini Egg Cookies last year, I knew I wanted to bake some more using the Cadbury mini eggs. Not only are they pretty and taste great as they are but using them in baking is fun and delicious.
This spring, you should definitely make these chewy mini egg cookie bars; they make the perfect Easter dessert! And if you are looking for more Easter recipes, check out the Puff Pastry Spanakopita or these Pan-Seared Lamb Lollipops. Or have a look at this collection of Easter Baking Recipes (Sweet or Savory).
Why?
- The best part: Sweet and full of chocolate.
- Pretty gift: Wrap them in a nice box and give them to friends and family. Bring to parties.
- Quick and easy recipe: It takes 45 minutes tops to make them from start to finish.
- Uses leftovers: You can bake the mini egg bars for Easter or after the Easter celebrations using leftover chocolate eggs and leftover chopped chocolate bunnies or whatever you happen to have.
Recipe ingredients
- Cadbury mini eggs
- You will need 1 ½ bags of chocolate mini eggs; one weighs 90 g/ 3 oz.
- Chop the contents of one bag for the bars and use the remaining ½ bag for topping the dough before baking.
- Chocolate chips
- Semisweet chocolate chips (75 g/ 2.5 oz/ ½ cup).
- You can also use white, dark, or milk chocolate chips.
- Nuts
- I use walnuts most of the time, but pecans, peanuts, almonds, macadamia, etc., are all great.
- Other ingredients: unsalted butter, all-purpose flour, one large egg, brown sugar, vanilla extract, a pinch of fine sea salt.
Step-by-step instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F. Grease a square baking tin (20×20 cm/ 8×8 inches) and line it with parchment paper or aluminum foil (1).
- Melt the butter in a small pan. Let it cool until you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
- Chop the mini eggs and the walnuts (2). Careful when chopping the eggs, their surface is hard and slippery, and the knife might slip if you don’t do it carefully. The pieces should remain rather chunky.
- Combine wet ingredients in a large bowl: melted butter, egg (3), sugar, and vanilla extract (4). Mix until smooth with an egg whisk.
- Add flour and salt and mix with a spoon until just combined (5). Don’t mix too much once you’ve added the dry ingredients.
- Fold in the chocolate eggs and chips and the walnuts (6).
- Transfer the buttery cookie dough to the prepared baking pan, smooth the top and slightly press the remaining whole eggs into the dough (7).
- Bake in the preheated oven for about 25 to 28 minutes until slightly golden brown. A toothpick inserted in the middle should come out clean with a few crumbs (make sure you don’t stick the toothpick into a piece of chocolate). I needed exactly 26 minutes (8).
- Let the Cadbury mini egg bars cool completely in the pan before removing and slicing.
Helpful tips
Most important tip: always use a digital kitchen scale when baking; it guarantees for best results. (Amazon affiliate link).
Mini eggs are only available at a particular time of year at the grocery store, around Easter time, from January/February to April (or whenever Easter falls).
Be careful when crushing/ chopping the chocolate eggs; this is the trickiest part of this otherwise simple recipe. If you are not careful, the knife might slip, and you might hurt yourself. You can use a food processor instead, but make sure that the eggs are not chopped too finely; they should be chunky.
Recipe FAQ
Use M&Ms or Smarties; they have a similar texture. And they are easier to chop. The color will be different, as the two mentioned are not pastel but brightly colored.
Yes, they are made by Hershey’s (Amazon affiliate link).
For German readers: Milka has similar candy that can be used for this recipe.
Store the Easter mini egg cookie bars at room temperature in airtight containers. They will keep for about 1 week.
You can freeze the dough for up to 3 months. Wrap in plastic wrap and keep it in an airtight container or freezer bag. Defrost in the fridge.
Freeze the cookie bars in an airtight container separated with parchment paper for easy removal. They will keep for about 6 months. Defrost the Easter cookie bars on the counter or in the fridge.
More recipes for Easter baking
Easter Mini Egg Cookie Bars
Equipment
- Baking pan: 20×20 cm/ 8×8 inches
Ingredients
- 115 g unsalted butter 1 stick/ 4 oz
- 1 egg large
- 150 g light brown sugar 5.3 oz/ 1 ¼ cup
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 125 g all-purpose flour 1 cup/ 4.5 oz
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt or Kosher
- 1 ½ bags of mini eggs divided Note 2
- 75 g semisweet chocolate chips 2.5 oz/ ½ cup
- 75 g walnuts 2.5 oz/ ½ cup, roughly chopped
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F. Grease the baking pan and line it with parchment paper.
- Melt the butter in a small pan. Let it cool until you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
- Chop the mini eggs and the walnuts. Careful when chopping the eggs, their surface is hard and slippery, and the knife might slip if you don’t do it carefully. The pieces should remain rather chunky.
- Combine melted butter, egg, sugar, and vanilla extract. Mix until smooth with an egg whisk.
- Add flour and salt and mix with a spoon until just combined. Don’t overmix.
- Fold in the chocolate eggs and chips and the walnuts.
- Transfer the dough to the pan, smooth the top and slightly press the remaining whole Cadbury eggs into the dough.
- Bake in the preheated oven for about 25 to 28 minutes. A toothpick inserted in the middle should come out clean with a few crumbs. I needed exactly 26 minutes.
- Let cool completely in the pan before removing and slicing.
Notes
- A digital kitchen scale will give you the most precise measure ensuring the best bake possible. (Amazon affiliate link).
- One bag of Cadbury mini eggs weighs 90 g/ 3 oz. You will need one bag for the dough and ½ bag (about 10-15 eggs) for topping the unbaked bars.