Chock full of chocolate chips and Rolos, these delectable Gooey Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars are crispy on the edges with ooey-gooey centers. They’re perfect for bake sales and parties—bet you can’t eat just one!
Where have I been, friends? Sunny Florida. Yep, just when Mother Nature decided there was still plenty of winter weather in store for us in Utah this spring, my family whisked away to have some fun in the sun. Florida is one of my favorite places, so it was hard to leave. But traveling 24/7 with three little ones did make it a bit easier. 🙂
First, we couldn’t go to Florida and not hit up Cocoa Beach.
And because Disney would be crazy stressful with a 1-year old (and expensive!), we decided to check out Gatorland. We got to sit on real gators and Noelle decided to show me her best gator impersonation on a fake one.
I don’t know about you, but I think the 5-year old on top is more frightening—especially when she’s hangry. 🙂
We also visited Indian Rocks Beach and our other Florida must, Lido beach in Sarasota.
It was hard settling back into reality, but what made it easier (and sweeter) was making these Gooey Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars. Before my trip, I stumbled upon a similar Betty Crocker recipe. I loved the idea of adding Rolos for extra chocolatey gooeyness and vanilla pudding mix for extra deliciousness. However, instead of the Betty Crocker cookie mix, I used our favorite bar cookie base from Shannon’s Gooey S’mores Bars. The result? WOWZA! I brought them to work and people loved them. I even got a couple recipe requests.
Crispy on the outside with gooey, chocolatey-caramely goodness on the inside, these Gooey Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars are absolutely irresistible. Bring them to a bake sale, a family gathering, or a church party, or whip them up for the fam and watch them disappear. Make sure to sneak some for yourself—these babies don’t last long!
- 1 cup butter, softened
- ¾ cup sugar
- ¾ cup brown sugar, packed
- 1 pkg instant vanilla pudding mix
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2-1/4 cup all purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 package chocolate chips (milk or semisweet)
- 3 Rolos, unwrapped and quartered
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees and line 9”x13” pan with parchment paper. Make sure to leave paper hanging over sides for easy removal of cookie bars.
- In a mixer, blend together butter and both sugars and vanilla pudding mix. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well between additions. Add vanilla and blend until combined.
- In a separate bowl combine flour, baking soda, salt. Slowly add to the wet ingredients. Mix well to combine. Stir in chocolate chips and Rolos.
- Bake 25-30 minutes until golden brown. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely before removing from pan. Use parchment paper to lift out of pan. Simply slide it onto a cutting board to cut into squares. Enjoy!
