Carmelitas
A chewy chocolate filling rests on an oatmeal-brown sugar crust in these winning bars. The origin of these bars seems to be Erlyce Larson's "Oatmeal Carmelitas," which she entered in a 1967 Minnesota Pillsbury Bake-Off. Erlyce used carmel ice cream topping. One of the recipes below makes the carmel by scratch; the other uses packaged caramel squares. The recipe on the left also adds pecans to the crust. Otherwise the recipes are very similar.
Carmelitas
from http://www.cuisinerecipes.com/
For the base:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 3/4 cups quick-cooking oats
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
3/4 cup chopped toasted pecans
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
2 sticks butter, melted (16 Tbsp.)
For the caramel:
2 cups granulated sugar
1/3 cup water
3 Tbsp. corn syrup
1 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
3/4 cup heavy cream
4 Tbsp. unsalted butter, cubed
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup chopped toasted pecans
Preheat oven to 350°. Line a 9×13-inch baking pan with parchment paper; lightly coat with nonstick spray.
Combine flour, oats, brown sugar, 3⁄4 cup pecans, baking soda, and 1⁄4 tsp. salt; stir in melted butter and mix until clumps form. Press half of crumb mixture into bottom of pan; bake 10 minutes. (Reserve other half of crumbs.)
Heat granulated sugar, water, corn syrup, and 1 1⁄2 tsp. salt in a large, heavy saucepan oven medium-high until it boils. Cover mixture; boil 2 minutes. Remove lid; boil until caramel is dark amber color, 12–14 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low; carefully whisk in cream and 4 Tbsp. butter until butter melts.
Spread chocolate chips over base. Pour 1 3⁄4 cups caramel over chips and sprinkle reserved crumb mixture evenly over top. Bake bars until lightly browned and edges are bubbly, 20–25 minutes.
Remove bars from oven and let cool; using overhanging parchment paper as handles, remove bars from pan. Rewarm remaining caramel and drizzle over bars. Sprinkle remaining 1⁄4 cup pecans over top of bars. Cover bars and store at room temperature.
Makes: 48 servings
Carmelitas
from http://luluthebaker.com/
32 caramel squares, unwrapped
1/2 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup butter, melted
3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1 cup flour
1 cup rolled oats
1 teaspoon baking soda
6 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
Combine caramels and cream in a small saucepan over low heat. Stir until completely smooth; set aside.
In a separate bowl, combine melted butter, brown sugar, flour, oats, and baking soda. Pat half of the oatmeal mixture into the bottom of an 8×8" pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.
Remove pan from oven and sprinkle chocolate chips over crust. Pour caramel mixture over chocolate chips. Crumble remaining oatmeal mixture over caramel.
Return to oven and bake an additional 15-20 minutes, until the edges are lightly browned. Remove from oven and cool completely before cutting.
*A stint in the fridge will help them cool off if you’re pinched for time. They shouldn’t be served cold, but all of that molten caramel takes a long time to cool down. They should be stored and served at room temperature.
**If you want to use homemade or store-bought caramel sauce in place of the caramel/cream mixture, use 1 1/4 cups of caramel sauce, and omit the caramel squares and heavy cream.
***To make a 9x13" version, simply double the amounts.
