Caramel Bars

As a child, I was wild about candy confections filled with gooey caramel, toasted nuts or nut butter, nougat and marshmallows. These days, I prefer to work my favorite candy ingredients into homemade baked goods like these gooey chocolate caramel bars.

We make our caramel bars with store-bought caramels and chocolate chips, which makes this recipe an easy one to whip up when the desire for sugar strikes. An easy vanilla cookie crust forms the base, with gooey caramel and chocolate in the middle and more cookie dough on top. A teaspoon of kosher salt brings all of the delicious flavors together. Like all cookie bars, this caramel bars recipe is great for potlucks, picnics, bake sales, birthday parties or any other time you need a luscious, buttery dessert.

Ingredients for Caramel Bars

• Butter: This recipe requires softened butter. If you don’t have some ready to go, there are several ways to soften butter quickly.
• Sugar: You need two types of sugar, regular granulated and confectioners’ (or powdered) sugar.
• Vanilla extract: Use your favorite vanilla extract brand or even homemade vanilla. Either way, make sure it’s natural vanilla extract, not imitation vanilla.
• All-purpose flour: Good old all-purpose flour does the trick here. Make sure to measure your flour correctly so you don’t run into any baking problems.
• Caramels: It’s in the name, so you know it’s an essential ingredient! If you have a favorite caramel candy brand, this is the time to use it.
• Whipping cream: Heavy whipping cream or heavy cream are pretty interchangeable in recipes like this one.
• Kosher salt: Kosher salt has larger crystals than table salt and gives a delicious salty boost to the sweet caramel bar.
• Chocolate chips: Dark chocolate chips are the best baking chocolate for these bars. The bitterness pairs beautifully with sweet caramel and the buttery cookie crust.

Directions

Step 1: Make your cookie base

Preheat the oven to 325°F. In a large bowl, beat the butter, sugars and vanilla until light and fluffy, five to seven minutes. Gradually beat in the flour, mixing well. Press three cups of the dough into the bottom of a greased 13×9-inch pan. Bake until the dough is set, 20 to 22 minutes. Cool it on a wire rack for 10 minutes.

Editor’s Tip: If you have a stand mixer, you can use it to blend the caramel bar cookie dough ingredients. If you do, the butter and sugars should be fluffy after mixing three or four minutes, provided the butter is soft before you start.

Step 2: Make the filling

Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, melt the caramels with cream over low heat until they’re smooth. Pour the mixture over the cooled cookie crust. Sprinkle with salt, then chocolate chips.

Step 3: Top it off and bake

Drop the remaining dough by the teaspoonful over the top of the chocolate caramel filling. Bake again until the bars are light golden brown, 30 to 35 minutes longer. Cool the bars completely on a wire rack.

Editor’s Tip: For ease, cut the caramel bars when they are still slightly warm.

Recipe Variations

• Spice things up: While your caramel sauce is warm, but before you pour it over the cookie crust, add spices or booze to give it a bit more zing. Caramel goes beautifully with cinnamon, pie spice blends or freshly grated nutmeg and is lovely with an added tablespoonful of brown liquor, such as bourbon, rum or whisky.
• Change your chips: The recipe calls for dark chocolate chips, but you could use milk chocolate if that’s more your speed. White chocolate chips would be a fine choice, too.
• Make DIY caramel sauce: If you have extra time, stir up a batch of our soft chewy caramels, skip the cooling step and mix in the heavy cream to make this recipe’s easy caramel topping.

How to Store Caramel Bars

Because caramel contains dairy, these bars are best stored in an airtight container in the fridge, with waxed paper or parchment between the layers. However, the caramel will be a little tough when it’s cold, so give refrigerated bars a quick warm-up in a microwave or toaster oven before eating.

How long do caramel bars last?

If you keep them in the fridge, caramel bars will last for two to three months. They can be frozen for up to a year when stored in an airtight, freezer-safe container.

Caramel Bars Tips

What are the best caramels to use for caramel bars?

Lower-cost caramel candies often contain hydrogenated palm kernel oil, artificial flavors and white mineral oil. In contrast, artisan caramels will likely include less processed ingredients such as butter, cream and molasses. Either is acceptable to use; it’s the baker’s choice.

Can you make these bars look more uniform?

If you prefer not to randomly drop the extra dough on top of the caramel, take the leftover dough in Step 3, form it into small balls, dust each one in flour, and gently roll them out. Place the rounds on top of the caramel and chocolate, and bake the bars as directed.

How do you serve caramel bars?

These gooey bars are delicious on their own and lovely when heated slightly. However, it never hurts to be a little “extra” and serve some vanilla ice cream on the side. If you’re having a party, pair these with one of our favorite fruit salads.