Caramelitas

5 from 2 votes
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Caramelitas – An easy bar cookie with a buttery oatmeal cookie base and filled with chocolate and gooey caramel.

This post is sponsored by Imperial Sugar. All thoughts and opinions are 100% my own.

caramelitas stacked on a white plate

 

If you have not tried a caramelita before you are missing out! It is a buttery oatmeal cookie type base that is filled with gooey caramel and plenty of chocolate. They are super easy to make, sweet, decadent, and delicious! It is kind of like a cross between an Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie with the Caramel Brownie filling.

Why You’ll Love These Caramelitas

  • Easy – these bar cookies come together in just about 5 minutes, with no hard to find ingredients, and you don’t have to scoop out and bake a few trays of cookies.
  • Delicious – gooey caramel and chocolate together is just a tasty combination!
  • Mix It Up – you can play with the chocolate in this recipe to make it more or less sweet. And if you aren’t a fan of sweet desserts you could do a salted caramel layer for a twist.
 

caramelitas ingredients

What You’ll Need

Be sure to scroll to the bottom of the post for the FULL PRINTABLE recipe card.

  • Butter – I always use unsalted when baking
  • Light Brown Sugar – I use Imperial Sugar brand sugar
  • Vanilla Extract
  • All-Purpose Flour
  • Old Fashioned Oats
  • Baking Soda
  • Salt
  • Caramels – you want the chewy individually wrapped caramels
  • Heavy Cream
  • Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
pouring melted caramel over chocolate chips in a baking dish

How To Make Caramelitas

  • Make Dough – In a bowl stir together the melted butter, brown sugar and vanilla until the mixture is smooth. Add in the flour, oats, baking soda and salt and mix until it just comes together. Spread half of the mixture into an lined 8-inch square pan. Bake for 10 minutes, just to start to set the cookie base.
  • Melt Caramels – meanwhile, melt together the caramels and heavy cream until smooth. I add to a microwave safe bowl and heat on 45 second intervals, stirring after each time until it is melted.
  • Bake – pour the melted caramel over the cookie dough base. Sprinkle with the chocolate chips and crumble the remaining dough over the top. Bake for 15-20 more minutes until golden brown and completely set. Remove from the oven and let it cool completely before slicing.
sliced caramelitas on a cutting board

Recipe Tips & Suggestions

  • This is one of those recipes that I think you really need to use the old fashioned rolled oats. The quick cooking oats are too fine and will not create a sturdy enough base for the caramel and chocolate layer.
  • Not a fan of sweet desserts, try using dark chocolate chips and a sprinkle of salt over the caramel. This adds a whole new dimension to the bars.
  • Feel free to double the recipe and bake in a 13×9 inch pan.
  • Let the bars cool completely before slicing. You want to let the caramel set back up some, or it will be a mess when you cut them and you will lose a lot of the filling.

What Kind Of Caramel To Use

You want to use individually wrapped chewy caramels. Both Kraft and Werthers make versions that are great for this. You could use Homemade Caramels, but that seems like a lot of extra work to me. I don’t advise using caramel sauce, because it will not set up as the bars cool and will always be a runny mess.

caramelitas stacked on a cutting board

Storage

Store your caramelitas in an airtight container or just cover the pan you baked them in. They will last at room temperature for 3-4 days. If you store them in the fridge be sure to let them come to room temperature before serving, you don’t want anyone to break a tooth on the caramel.

Freezing – you can definitely freeze these bars for 4-5 months. Just let them thaw on the counter before serving.

More Easy Dessert Recipes

cropped close up caramelitas on a white plate
5 from 2 votes

Caramelitas

By Erin
Caramelitas – An easy bar cookie with a buttery oatmeal cookie base and filled with chocolate and gooey caramel.
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 30 minutes
Total: 40 minutes
Servings: 16

Ingredients 

Oatmeal Bars

Topping

Instructions 

  • Preheat oven to 350°F. Heavily grease or line an 8-inch baking dish with parchment paper as caramel will stick to sides.
  • In a bowl mix butter, brown sugar, and vanilla until smooth.  Add flour, oats, baking soda, and salt. Mix until well combined. Spread 1/2 of dough into prepared baking dish. Bake for 10 minutes. 
  • Meanwhile melt caramels and heavy cream together. 
  • After removing pan from oven, sprinkle chocolate chips over dough. Pour caramel on top and spread into an even layer. Crumble last 1/2 of dough over top. It does not need to cover perfectly. Return to  oven and bake for 15-20 minutes, until golden brown.
  • Let cool completely before serving and cut into squares.

Notes

I used Imperial Sugar Brand Sugar in my recipe

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 239kcal | Carbohydrates: 26g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 31mg | Sodium: 217mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 16g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Author: Erin
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes
Course: Dessert Recipes
Cuisine: American
Servings: 16
Calories: 239
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I am sharing this recipe for Caramelitas over at Imperial Sugar today.  Please go check it out, you can make Caramelitas for your family this holiday season!

About Erin S

Welcome to Dinners, Dishes, & Desserts where my love of food meets my busy life. My name is Erin and I’m a casual home cook who loves to feed people. On this blog, you’ll find hundreds of quick and easy recipes made mostly from scratch. My days are spent in the kitchen, creating new recipes to share with family and friends.

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14 Comments

  1. How nice of you and your neighbors to take treats to the fire fighters! And I LOVE caramelitas – this recipe looks to die for. I think I’d like to make a batch of these and share them as well. 🙂 Hope you have a wonderful holiday!

  2. I have been dying to make these for so long! What is not to love about oatmeal, chocolate and caramel?! I think I need to have one last baking day!

  3. What a sweet gesture (literally 😉 ) for your local firefighters! 🙂 And these Caramelitas look perfect – so ooey & gooey!

  4. These carmelitas look perfect! And baking for your firefighters is so sweet! Such a perfect treat for the holiday!