Oatmeal Fudge Bars
It’s officially time to start baking lots of fudge again! I made some this year with a little twist – Oatmeal Fudge Bars! They are so easy to whip up and more importantly, they’re mouth-watering delicious.
CHOCOLATE OATMEAL BARS
My favorite time of year is always going to be BAKING SEASON. I’ll bake any chance I get but this time of year really kicks it up a notch. Cookies, fudge, candy, and everything in between!
This year, I decided to try and mix up my fudge recipe a bit by combining them with oats, resulting in a chocolate oatmeal bar recipe. They are SOOOO GOOD, too! These are definitely lick-the-bowl-clean worthy. You might be tempted to keep them for yourself, so you might want to make extra, haha!
OATMEAL BARS RECIPE
If you’re planning to attend (small) gatherings this year or simply want to drop off some baked goods to a friend, these are a great option. Perfect crowd-pleasers and make a great gift as they can be packaged quite pretty for the holidays. You could even use this recipe to make some mason jar recipe gifts!
As much as family will appreciate these, they’re good for just an afternoon to yourself too. I will find ANY chance to devour some chocolate so of course I’ll be baking these for the rest of the year. They have oatmeal, so that means I can eat a pan guilt-free, right? I’ll be dunking these right into some milk for the perfect afternoon treat.
BAKING TOOLS YOU MIGHT NEED
Before you get started, make sure you have these few key baking tools in your kitchen:
- MIXING BOWL: This glass mixing bowl is my favorite and you will see it make an appearance in a lot of recipes!
- BAKING DISH: I am IN LOVE with my baking dish and it creates some perfect results when baking.
INGREDIENTS FOR OATMEAL BARS
For this recipe, you’ll need these ingredients:
- OATS: Make sure to use old-fashioned oats for this recipe!
- FLOUR: The flour brings the topping together. So good!
- SALT: Just a bit of salt to balance out the “science-y” part of baking 😉
- BAKING SODA: Not too much baking soda is used for this recipe, but a very needed ingredient.
- BUTTER: Make sure your butter is softened, you’ll need some for the fudge and topping!
- BROWN SUGAR: Pack down your brown sugar nice and tight.
- EGGS: Just a couple eggs for the topping.
- VANILLA: A dash of vanilla makes everything better, don’t you think?
- CONDENSED MILK: Sweetened condensed milk brings the fudge to perfection!
- CHOCOLATE CHIPS: I used chocolate chips to make the fudge part of the recipe.
HOW TO MAKE OATMEAL FUDGE BARS
Scroll down for a printable step-by-step version of this recipe!
- PREPARE: Preheat the oven to 350F and spray a 9×13 baking pan with nonstick cooking spray; set aside.
- MIX TOPPING: In a mixing bowl, combine the oats, flour, salt, baking soda, butter, brown sugar, eggs, and vanilla; mix well.
- MELT CHOCOLATE: In a saucepan, heat the condensed milk, chocolate chips, butter, and vanilla. Heat it on the stove until the chocolate chips have melted and stir well until all ingredients are combined.
- ADD TO PAN: In the baking pan, spread 2/3 of the oatmeal mixture into the pan, spreading evenly. Pour the fudge on top of the batter. Top with the remaining oatmeal mixture by dropping small pieces of the dough on top of the fudge, spreading evenly across it.
- BAKE: Bake in the oven for 20 minutes, making sure not to overcook as it will finish setting after cooling.
WHAT IS THE BEST WAY TO SOFTEN BUTTER?
The best way is to pull out your stick of butter about an hour before you plan to bake. However, an easier way when you’re in a hurry or just don’t want to wait is to put the wrapped butter in the microwave for 20 seconds, flipping it every 5 seconds so it gets all sides.
CAN I SUBSTITUTE SWEETENED CONDENSED MILK?
Yes! If you don’t have any lying around you can easily make your own using milk, sugar, butter, and vanilla. You can also use coconut milk if you have it by letting it sit for about half an hour and scraping off the cream that settles to the top and adding some sugar to it.
HOW SHOULD I STORE THESE OATMEAL BARS?
These are best stored on the counter in an airtight container, but you can also store them in the fridge to make them last a little longer. They also freeze really well! Simply bake, cut, and line in an airtight container with parchment paper between each “layer” of oatmeal bars.
If you have tried this Oatmeal Fudge Bars recipe, then please rate it in the recipe card and let me know how it turned out in the comments below!
Oatmeal Fudge Bars
Ingredients
OATMEAL TOPPING:
- 3 cups old fashioned oats
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup butter, softened
- 2 cups packed brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 tbsp vanilla
FUDGE:
- 1 can sweetened condensed milk, 14 ounces
- 2 cups of semi-sweet or milk chocolate chips
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1 tablespoon vanilla
Equipment
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Spray non-stick cooking spray into a 9x13 inch baking pan. Set aside.
- In a bowl combine oats, flour, salt, baking soda, butter, brown sugar, eggs and vanilla. Mix until combined.
- In a saucepan, heat condensed milk, chocolate chips, butter and vanilla. Heat it on the stove until the chocolate chips have melted and stir well until all ingredients are combined.
- In prepared baking pan, spread 2/3 of the oatmeal mixture into the pan, spreading evenly.
- Pour fudge topping on the batter.
- Top with the remaining oatmeal mixture by dropping small pieces of the dough on top of the fudge, spreading evenly across it.
- Bake for 20 minutes. DO NOT OVERCOOK!! It will set after cooling.
Notes
- The best way to soften butter is to pull out your stick of butter about an hour before you plan to bake. However, an easier way when you’re in a hurry or just don’t want to wait is to put the wrapped butter in the microwave for 20 seconds, flipping it every 5 seconds so it gets all sides.
- If you don’t have a can of sweetened condensed milk you can easily make your own using milk, sugar, butter, and vanilla. You can also use coconut milk if you have it by letting it sit for about half an hour and scraping off the cream that settles to the top and adding some sugar to it.
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These were really good! Everyone loved these treats!
Love the crunch from the oatmeal topping, but still how soft they are! No complaints from my family!