How to bake Kruidnoten Cookie Bars

• Preheat the oven to 180°C or 350°F on the conventional setting.
• Add the butter and sugar to the bowl of your stand mixer and let the machine mix these ingredients together for a couple of minutes.
• In the meantime, mix the flour, cornstarch, speculaas spice mix, and a pinch of salt in a separate bowl.
• Add the egg to the butter and sugar.
• After the egg has been incorporated into the butter mixture, slowly add the flour mixture to the bowl of the stand mixer. Don't let it mix for too long though, and wait until the ingredients are only just nicely incorporated into the dough.
• Crumple up your parchment paper into a big ball, then somewhat flatten it out again. Now it's not only easier to line your baking baking tin, but the paper will also stay in place better.
• Scoop the cookie dough into the baking tin and try and distribute it evenly. Push the dough into the corners and sides of the tin, then even the surface of the dough out a bit with the back of a spoon.
• Bake the cookie base for around 30 minutes in the center of the oven.
• Transfer the cookie base - still inside the baking tin - from the oven to a baking rack to cool down for 30 - 45 minutes.
• When the cookie base has really cooled down you can start making the chocolate ganache. Transfer the milk chocolate to a bowl. Warm up the cream in a small pan until it is almost - but not yet quite - boiling. Then pour the cream over the chocolate, into the bowl. Let it sit for around a minute, then mix the molten chocolate together with the cream with a fork or whisk until it's nice and smooth.
• Pour the chocolate ganache into the baking tray, over the cookie base. Then decorate it with the chocolate kruidnoten shortly after, this will ensure they'll stay nicely in place when the ganache turns more solid. At this stage you can try and imagine where you'll want to cut the bars later on. You'll make it much easier for yourself when you don't have to cut through the kruidnoten on top!
• Add the white chocolate to a small mug and then melt the chocolate by placing the cup in hot or gently boiling water. Stir the chocolate with a teaspoon until it has fully melted. You'll use this teaspoon to decorate the kruidnoten cookie bars in a bit. Check whether the consistency of the white chocolate is liquid enough. If it only comes off the spoon in big drops add 1 - 2 teaspoons of sunflower oil to thin your chocolate. Then decorate the top with small strokes of white chocolate, the easiest way is to drop small amounts of chocolate down the side of the spoon while moving quickly along the surface.
• Cover the chocolate kruidnoten cookie with some tin foil, then let the chocolate harden in the fridge for another 45 minutes. Afterwards you can cut the cookie into the desired amount of bars & enjoy it!