Chocolate nut squares, like bar cookies, are easy-to-prepare snacks which are often loaded with nuts and chocolate. They are prepared with a buttery shortbread-style biscuit base that provides a sturdy foundation, and a variety of rich sweet fillings such as chocolate ganache or fudge, lemon curd or custard and cheesecake. Toppings vary from roasted nuts to caramel for a satisfying crunch in contrast to the creamy filling.

This recipe is more than 25 years old and it utilises basic pantry ingredients that most bakers already have in their kitchens. Best of all, the recipe is versatile and easy to adapt to whatever filling and topping ingredients you have on hand, or even omit them if they are unavailable. The original recipe calls for pecans but because they tend to be quite expensive, I have substituted them with walnuts instead.

Feel free to experiment with other nuts such as hazelnuts, almonds, cashews and even the affordable peanuts. While some recipes online simply assemble the layers and bake the whole tray in one go, I advocate blind baking the crust first to avoid getting a soggy bottom. Lining the baking pan with parchment or aluminium foil helps when lifting the slab of cookie bar out to cut into squares.

That is another advantage of cookie bars as there’s no need to shape each individual cookie; you just need to cut up the slab after baking. Bar cookies are quite versatile with a variety of fillings and toppings. — LOW LAY PHON/The Star Chocolate nut squares/ba.