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Santa would be more than happy to find these delicious oats and everything bars waiting for him with a cold glass of milk on Christmas Eve. I can’t remember exactly where I got this recipe from, but they are so easy to make. Plus, they are so tasty. These bars are a family favorite.
There is a sugary layer of oat mixture on the top and bottom of these bars. The mixture is made by combining rolled oats, brown sugar, baking soda, salt, and butter. In the center, you find a layer of chocolate and caramel. The caramel in these bars are nice and soft. It’s made from melting Kraft caramels or caramel bits with milk. The caramel bits save you from having to unwrap 40-49 caramels. The chocolate layer is just good old chocolate chips. Oats, chocolate, and caramel – who could ask for anything more in a tasty bar. Bars like these can also be called caramelitas.
Here is what you need to make the
Oats and Everything Bars
- PACKAGE INDIVIDUALLY WRAPPED CARAMELS OR A BAG CARAMEL BITS
- MILK
- BUTTER
- FLOUR
- ROLLED OATS
- BROWN SUGAR
- BAKING SODA
- SALT
- SEMISWEET CHOCOLATE CHIPS
Oats and Everything Bars
Ingredients
- 1 (14 oz) package individually (about 40–49 caramels) wrapped caramels or 1 (10 oz) bag caramel bits
- 3 Tbsp milk
- 3/4 cup butter
- 1 cup flour
- 1 cup rolled oats
- 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C).
- Peel the plastic wrapping from the caramels and melt them in a saucepan over medium heat along with the milk. ( If using a microwave, use a large, microwave-safe bowl, melt the caramels and milk in the microwave at medium power for 2 to 3 minutes, checking every 20 to 30 seconds.) Stir and set aside.
- Melt the margarine and combine with flour, oats, brown sugar, baking soda and salt.
- Press slightly more than half the oat mixture into a greased 11 x 7 inch pan. Sprinkle chocolate chips on top of the mixture, then pour the caramel over the chips. Top with remaining oat mixture.
- Bake for 20 minutes; cool. Cut into bars.
Notes
*****You can also use quick oats, but I used regular. You can also add 1/2 cup chopped nuts when you add the chocolate chips. Plus, if you don’t have the wrapped caramels, delete the wrapped caramels and milk and mix 1 (12 1/2 ounce) jar caramel ice cream topping (1 cup) with 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour in it’s place.
This is the original photo from this post when it was first posted in December 2008.
3 comments
I’m delighted to have this recipe made with oatmeal instead of the one I have made with German Sweet chocolate cake mix. You have lots of little hands to help you unwrap those 50 caramels. For years with no help with the unwrapping, I’ve avoided making the recipe I have…but just this year I discovered that Kraft is now making “caramel chips”, which work perfectly. (The down side is that it is an 11 or 12 oz. package, so you have to open two packages to get the 14 oz. I’m not certain that it makes that much difference, however, if you only use one package!
Oooooo those look so good! Yum!!
yummy! I think I had something like this before that had snicker bars in it. I’ll have to make these and see if they are the same.