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Square image of Carmelitas on plate with chocolate chips.
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5 from 3 votes

Carmelita Recipe

Full of oats, chocolate, and caramel, this Carmelita Recipe is easy, tasty, and absolutely addictive. It's the perfect dessert to satisfy any sweet tooth.
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time25 minutes
Chill:3 hours
Total Time3 hours 40 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: Carmelita, Carmelita Recipe, Carmelitas
Servings: 16
Author: Rachel

Ingredients

  • ¾ cup salted butter melted
  • cup brown sugar packed
  • 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 ¼ cup rolled oats or old fashioned oats
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon salt divided in half
  • 40 caramel squares
  • cup heavy cream
  • 1 ½ cup semisweet chocolate chips

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line and grease an 8X8 inch baking pan. (I use parchment paper because the caramel mixture is very sticky and can make the squares very difficult to remove.)
  • Melt the butter in a large microwave-safe bowl. Once this is melted, whisk in the brown sugar and vanilla.
  • Stir in the flour, oats, baking soda, and ¼ teaspoon salt. I like to use a pastry cutter to crumble it together well.
  • Press about half of this mixture into the prepared baking pan. Bake this for 10 minutes.
  • While this is baking, prepare the filling. Place the caramels, cream, and ¼ teaspoon salt into a large microwave-safe bowl. Stir them together. Heat on high power for 1 minute. Stir again. Heat again for 1 minute and stir until the mixture is smooth. (Only heat as needed to get the mixture smooth.)
  • When the crust is finished baking, evenly sprinkle the chocolate chips over it.
  • Then pour the caramel sauce over the chocolate layer.
  • Next, cover this with the remaining crust mixture. (Use your hand to sprinkle it on and then just tap it down lightly.)
  • Place the baking pan back in the oven and bake for another 15 minutes or until lightly browned.
  • Remove the pan to a wire rack and then allow to cool completely before slicing. (The caramel will all run out if you try to slice the bars while hot.) If you leave them at room temperature, you will probably have to allow them to set overnight. Or you may place the baking pan in the fridge for at least 3 hours.

Notes

  1. Rolled or old fashioned oats are best for this recipe.
  2. If you want to switch up the chocolate flavor you can use milk chocolate or dark chocolate chips.
  3. You can swap out granulated sugar for the brown sugar, but it won't taste as caramely as we are going for.
  4. Prepare ahead of time since these do need to chill for at least 3 hours.
  5. Double this recipe and bake in a 9"x 13" pan.