Carmelitas cookie bars are made with layers of oatmeal cookie crumble, gooey salted caramel, chocolate and crunchy nuts. The bottom layer bakes up like a soft oatmeal cookie while the crumb topping turns lightly golden and crisp. Every bite is chewy, sweet, salty and nutty, making them a favorite for potlucks, bake sales and holiday desserts.
There's something special about the combination of chocolate, salted caramel and nuts. Sweet, salty and nutty. It's truly one of my favorite flavor combinations. And thanks to the old-fashioned rolled oats, we can almost call these Carmelitas cookie bars healthy. I'm kidding, I'm kidding. Adding oats doesn't make these Carmelitas bars healthy. But it does make them extra yummy! I mean, who can resist chocolate, caramel and nuts sandwiched between two layers of oat cookie crumble? Not me.
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Ingredients
- All purpose flour
- Old fashioned oats
- White sugar
- Brown sugar
- Salted butter
- Pecans
- Walnuts
- Semi sweet chocolate chips or chunks
- Store bought or homemade salted caramel sauce
- Baking soda
- Salt
See recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
Step 1: Combine the flour, baking soda and salt into a mixing bowl and stir well. Next, add the oats, brown sugar, white sugar and melted butter to the mixing bowl and mix until combined.
Step 2: Place half of the crust mixture into a 9x13 baking dish and press into an even layer. Bake for 10 minutes at 350 degrees.
Step 3: Sprinkle pecans and walnuts evenly over the baked bottom crust.
Step 4: Next, sprinkle the chocolate chips/chunks evenly over the nuts.
Step 5: Pour the salted caramel sauce evenly over chocolate chips.
Step 6: Crumble the remaining crust on top. Bake the Carmelita bars for 18-20 minutes at 350 degrees.
Substitutions and Variations
- Gluten Free - you can substitute a one-for-one gluten free flour for the all purpose flour.
- Vegan - to make these vegan substitute vegan chocolate chips and vegan caramel sauce and use a certified vegan sugar.
- Nuts - you can substitute your favorite nuts. Pecans are the most common nuts used in Carmelitas. I always have walnuts on hand though, so I typically use a mix of half pecans and half walnuts. However, you can use a single nut, a combination of nuts, or leave the nuts out. The nuts part of this recipe is totally flexible.
- Chocolate - I love chopped semi-sweet or dark chocolate but chips work just as well. You could also use milk chocolate chips.
- Caramel sauce - homemade salted caramel sauce is one of my very favorite recipes, but you can also use store bought caramel sauce.
Storage
Store any leftover oatmeal caramel bars in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the refrigerator for up to 7 days. You can also freeze Carmelita cookie bars for up to 3 months.
Next Level Tips
- Many recipes for Carmelita bars involve unwrapping and melting caramel chews. That is time consuming and just doesn't taste as amazing as caramel sauce. I highly recommend using my homemade salted caramel sauce recipe for the caramel layer. Homemade salted caramel sauce adds a deeper caramel flavor and a smoother texture than melted caramel candies.
- If your caramel sauce is too thick to pour, you can microwave it for 15 to 30 seconds and it will be pourable again.
- Bars are always a dessert favorite. If you love bars, also try my white chocolate macadamia nut bars and my brown butter chocolate chip cookie bars. My gluten free sweet potato brownies are delicious, a fun way to add sweet potatoes to a dessert and can be made with regular flour too.
FAQ
Carmelitas are believed to get their name from their caramel filling. While the exact origin of the name is unclear, these oatmeal cookie bars have been a popular dessert for decades thanks to their layers of caramel, chocolate and nuts.
No, you can easily skip the nuts layer.
Yes, Carmelitas freeze well. Store them in an airtight container and freeze for up to 3 months. Allow the bars to come to room temperature before serving.
Related
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
Carmelitas Cookie Bars
Equipment
- 9x13 baking pan
Ingredients
Crust
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
- 1 cup salted butter melted
- 1 cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup white sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
Filling
- ½ cup pecans chopped
- ½ cup walnuts chopped
- 10 ounces semi sweet chocolate chips or chunks
- 1 cup jarred or homemade salted caramel sauce
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350℉ and line a 9x13 baking pan with parchment paper.
- Add the flour, baking soda and salt to a mixing bowl and stir well. Add the oats, brown sugar, white sugar and melted butter to the mixing bowl and mix until fully combined.
- Place half of the crust into the baking pan and press down into an even layer. Bake for 10 minutes and remove from the oven.
- Sprinkle the nuts evenly over the baked crust.
- Next, sprinkle the chocolate chips/chunks evenly over the nuts.
- Heat the caramel sauce for 15-30 seconds in the microwave to make it pourable. Pour evenly over the chocolate chips.
- Crumble the remaining crust mixture on top of the caramel sauce. Return the baking pan to the oven and bake for 18-20 minutes until the top is lightly golden brown.
- Allow the bars to completely cool and then chill them for 30-60 minutes before removing them from the pan and slicing.
Notes
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
- ½ cup salted butter, melted
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons white sugar
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup pecans
- ¼ cup walnuts
- 5 ounces chocolate chips (half bag)
- ½ cup store bought or homemade salted caramel sauce
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Wendy says
These were a total hit for Super Bowl Sunday! I highly recommend the homemade Carmel sauce…. game changer!!
Tracy @ Next Level Baker says
So happy they were a hit! The homemade salted caramel sauce is one of my very favorites. So yummy!