Caramelitas

Ooey, gooey deliciousness is what these bars are made of! They're basically two layers of a buttery oatmeal cookie sandwiched with loads of caramel and chocolate.  So good, and so rich! They are divine with a scoop of vanilla ice cream but are absolutely dreamy by themselves with a nice cold glass of milk as well.  They cut best when cool, but if you want to just scoop them into your bowl right out of the oven, I won't judge.  In fact, that's what typically happens at our house.  We just can't wait to dig in!  

Caramelitas

modified from Averie Cooks

*makes 12-16 bars

INGREDIENTS

3/4 cup butter, melted 
3/ 4 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup old fashioned oats (or rolled oats)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt 
12 oz bag of Caramel Bits
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 cup Chocolate Chips (I used Ghirardelli Milk Chocolate)


INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat oven to 350F.  Line an 8×8-inch pan with aluminum foil sprayed with cooking spray, or parchment paper. This will make it much easier to slice and remove the bars from the pan.

  
In a large microwave-safe bowl, melt the butter then add in the brown sugar and vanilla.  Whisk until smooth.  .

Add the flour, oats, baking soda, and salt, and stir until combined. Mixture will be quite thick.
Add half of the mixture to the prepared pan and smooth it out to make an even layer. 
Bake for 10 minutes. While it bakes, make the caramel sauce. 

In a large microwave-safe mixing bowl, combine the caramel bits and cream, and heat on high power for 1 min, then stir.  Keep microwaving and stirring in 30-second bursts until caramel is melted and smooth.  

After 10 minutes, remove pan from the oven and evenly sprinkle with the chocolate chips.
Slowly and evenly pour caramel sauce over the chocolate.
Crumble the remaining topping over the top as evenly as you can. 
Return pan to oven and bake for about 15 to 18 minutes, or until edges are lightly browned and center is bubbling slightly.

Allow bars to cool completely in the pan before slicing and serving (about 4 hours at room temperature or 1 hour in the fridge), or just grab a spoon and scoop it out hot :).