Carmelitas

Chocolate, caramel and oats combine with these delicious Carmelitas! An easy dessert the whole family will love.

With the flavors in these bars, you can absolutely do no wrong! I have been in love with Carmelitas since I can remember, which is too far back.

These bars are absolutely amazing and so delicious! With layers of goodness consisting of an oat mixture, chocolate chips and caramel sauce, you absolutely just fall in love.

We make these bars all year long for various different occasions, it is one of the most requested bars by the whole family and one almost everyone knows how to make.

If this is your first time seeing Caramelitas, you have to make them! Trust me, they will become one of your favorite desserts ever.

I love easy and tasty – and these are both! With easy to find ingredients, they are also super quick to whip up and don’t take too long to bake. 

The hardest part is waiting just a little bit for them to cool off which really isn’t that long anyways! So in reality like I said they really are the perfect dessert.

Some of my other favorite bar recipes we have on our site include: Lunch Lady Peanut Butter Bars, Brookies and Funfetti Sugar Cookie Cheesecake Bars.

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:

• Easy to find ingredients help these come together in no time.
• You can make these thicker by baking in a smaller pan.
• The flavors in these go so well together, the perfect combination.

INGREDIENTS NEEDED (FULL RECIPE AT THE BOTTOM OF THE POST): 

All-purpose flour
Salted butter
Old fashioned oats
Brown sugar
Baking soda
Salt
Caramel squares
Half and half or heavy cream
Chocolate chips

HOW TO MAKE CARMELITAS, STEP BY STEP:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare a 9 x 13-inch pan by lining it with parchment paper. Set aside.
2. Unwrap the caramels and place them in the top pot of a double boiler then add in the half and half. 
3. Fill the bottom pot of the double boiler with 1-2 inches of water. 
4. Put the top pot over the bottom and place on the stove over medium-high heat. 
5. Heat until the caramels are melted, stirring occasionally. Set aside while you assemble the oat bar mixture.
6. In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, melted butter, oatmeal, brown sugar, baking soda, and salt.
7. Press ½ of the oat mixture in the bottom of the prepared baking pan covering as much as the bottom as you can, it is ok if there are a few holes.
8. Bake for 10 minutes or until it is just turning golden brown.
9. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with the chocolate chips.
10. Pour the melted caramel over the chocolate chips and then sprinkle on remaining oat crumb mixture, distributing it as evenly as possible.
11. Return to the oven and bake for an additional 15-20 minutes or until the top is starting to turn golden brown and caramel is bubbling on the sides.
12. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes.
13. To remove from the pan, pull up on the parchment paper and set on a flat surface like a cutting board.
14. Cool again for 10 minutes then cut into squares while they are still slightly warm.
15. Serve and enjoy!

CAN I USE ANOTHER TYPE OF OAT?

Yes! If you don’t have old fashioned rolled oats or perfer quick cooking oats you can substitute them for the same amount that is called for in this recipe.

The texture might be slightly different, but they will turn out either way using whatever of the two oats that you decide.

CAN I USE CARAMEL SAUCE?

While some recipes do use a caramel sauce, we do not recommend using one as they are slightly thinner.

Sticking with traditional caramels and making a sauce that way is how we have always done it and recommend doing it. It doesn’t take that much more time.

WHAT ELSE CAN I ADD TO MY CARAMELITAS?

While we think these are absolutely perfect the way that they are, you can absolutely add some additions if you’d like.

Some additions that we have added in the past are chopped nuts, flaked sea salt and toffee bits.

These are also amazing with a little extra caramel or chocolate drizzle over the top and go perfect with ice cream.

CAN I CUT THIS RECIPE IN HALF?

Yes you can, you can bake these in a 9×9-inch pan. You can decide to cut the ingredients in half, or you can use the same amount and make thicker bars.

HOW TO STORE:

These can be stored (after they have cooled) in an airtight container where they will keep for up to 4-5 days or a week in the refrigerator.

These can also be frozen, place in an freezer container or bag layered separated by parchment paper and they will keep frozen for up to 3-4 month.

To defrost, remove to the countertop until thawed.

TIPS AND TRICKS:

• These can be made thicker by baking in a 9×9-inch pan.
• Use your favorite chocolate chips for this recipe.
• Quick cooking oats can be substituted for old fashioned oats, see above on how to do that.
• You can cut these as large or small as you’d like!
• You can use heavy cream or half and half to help melt your caramels, this is your choice.
• These can be frozen, see tips above.
• Give your bars some extra flavor by adding some chopped nuts, flaked sea salt or a caramel/chocolate drizzle over finished bars.

Looking for that easy but super tasty bar that you will not get sick of? Then you need to make a batch of these Carmelitas ASAP!

If you like this recipe you might also like:

• Hello Dolly Bars
• Scotcheroos
• Ultimate Peanut Butter Brownies
• Chocolate Sopapilla Cheesecake Bars

If you’ve tried these CARMELITAS or any other recipe on my site, let me know in the comment section how it turned out, we love hearing from our readers! You can also follow along with me on PINTEREST, FACEBOOK and INSTAGRAM to see more amazing recipes and what shenanigans I’m getting into!

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED NOVEMBER, 2021