Soft and chewy coconut oatmeal cookie bars stuffed with dark chocolate and homemade caramel sauce.
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homemade samoa cookie bars
Is there even another top contender for the best flavor combination? I mean, samoa cookies have it all figured out (and they’re the best girl scout cookie!) Chocolate, caramel, and coconut are all a perfect match for each other. Whenever I make these I like to make a double batch and store the excess in the freezer, they’re SO good. But let me tell you exactly what these are. It starts with a super soft oatmeal cookie dough that gets some toasted coconut added in. We partially bake most of that cookie dough in a square pan, then load it with a generous amount of dark chocolate and homemade salted caramel sauce. Top that off with chunks of the remaining coconut oatmeal cookie dough and bake. What you’re left with is pure dessert perfection! Another name for these delicious bars are carmelitas.
what are carmelitas?
Carmelitas are a more common way to describe these bars, but I’ve also found that not many people have heard of them! Carmelitas are essentially two layers of oatmeal cookie dough that are filled with a very very generous amount of caramel sauce and chocolate. I mean…it’s dessert perfection if you ask me. If you’ve ever had a dream bar from Potbelly, these are essentially what those are.
expert baking tips
Weigh your ingredients:
My recipes are all written in grams because it is the most accurate way to bake. When you use a kitchen scale, you ensure that your baked goods turn out as close to the written recipe as possible. Plus, the cleanup is way easier when using a scale! I will provide standard cup measurements but please note that I have not tested the recipe using cup measurements and therefore can not guarantee your recipe will come out how mine did. Here is my favorite kitchen scale.
Use room temperature ingredients:
It’s important that your ingredients are at room temperature so that they can easily incorporate with each other. Take out your egg and butter about an hour before starting the cookies, and the cream cheese about an hour before making the cream cheese frosting.
Mix the dough carefully:
When adding in the flour, only fold the mixture just until no flour streaks remain. Over mixing the dough leads to more gluten formation, which can make the cookies more tough in texture.
line your pan with parchment paper
The caramel likes to ooze out of the bars which can make them difficult to release from the pan. Using parchment to line your pan gives you the ability to pick the bars up out of the pan so you don’t have to worry about cutting them in the pan.
let the carmelitas chill
Annoying, I know! But very necessary. You’re going to need to set the carmelitas to chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours, up to overnight. If you try to cut the carmelitas before they have fully cooled and set, you’re going to have caramel and chocolate everywhere. I know that’s not necessarily a bad thing, but, I still recommend waiting for the best results.
A note on oven temperature:
Ovens vary and fluctuate in temperature and might not always actually be at the temperature they claim to be at. If you love to bake like I do, I highly recommend getting an oven thermometer. They are super helpful for letting you know when your oven might be lying to you! I use this one.
ingredients for samoa cookie bars:
- All purpose flour: for structure and chewiness. I haven’t tried it but a 1:1 swap gluten free flour should work perfectly here.
- Rolled oats: I recommend rolled oats for the best texture.
- Baking soda & baking powder: for helping the dough rise.
- Salt: to balance and bring out the sweetness of the carmelitas. Never skip on the salt!
- Unsalted butter: for tenderizing and giving the carmelitas a classic buttery taste. You can substitute in salted butter, just be sure to remove the extra salt from the dough.
- Light brown sugar & granulated sugar: a mixture of both helps to both give moisture and flavor, while locking in moisture and keeping the dough soft as well.
- Egg: for adding moisture and binding the dough together.
- Vanilla: for flavoring.
- Dark chocolate chips: for the filling. I recommend using dark chocolate as it provides a nice contrast to the sweetness of the caramel and the dough. Feel free to use semi sweet or milk chocolate in it’s place if you prefer something a bit sweeter.
- Salted caramel sauce: you can use store-bought caramel sauce and add a pinch of salt to it, or you can make my delicious and easy 15 minute salted caramel sauce!
- Sweetened coconut flakes: the star that takes delicious chocolate and caramel into samoa flavor!
how to make carmelitas
samoa cookie bars q&a
how to make salted caramel sauce
I recommend making my super easy and delicious 15 minute salted caramel sauce. You can even make it up to one week in advance and store it in the fridge! If you are looking for something more quick, you can use a thick store-bought caramel sauce and add salt to taste.
can these carmelitas be made ahead of time?
Definitely! Honestly, these only get better with time. Feel free to make these the night before and store them in the fridge until ready to serve.
how to store carmelitas
Because these bars are filled with caramel, I do recommend storing them in the fridge for the best food safety practices. They are delicious straight from the fridge but you can also let them come to room temperature for 20-30 minutes if you would like. They will also freeze very well if you are looking for longer-term storage. Just lay them flat on a tray in the freezer, and once they have completely frozen, store them all together in an airtight container.
tools and ingredients:
You can find all my favorite tools and ingredients that I use on my Amazon Storefront page, here!
other recipes you might enjoy:
did you make this recipe?
I’d love to see and know your thoughts! please leave a comment and review below, and tag me on instagram @freshbeanbakery. #freshbeanbakery
Samoa Cookie Bars
Ingredients
- 60 g sweetened coconut flakes (¾ c.)
- 113 g unsalted butter (½ c.)
- 100 g light brown sugar (½ c.)
- 50 g granulated sugar (¼ c.)
- 1 egg room temperature
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 130 g all purpose flour (1 c. + 1 tbsp.)
- 80 g rolled oats (1 c.)
- ½ tsp. baking soda
- ½ tsp. baking powder
- ½ tsp. salt
- 170 g dark chocolate chips (1 c.)
- 225 g salted caramel sauce (1 c.)
Instructions
- If you're making homemade salted caramel sauce, make it before starting this recipe. You can make this one and store it in the fridge for up to 1 week in advance.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F / 175°C. Grease and line an 8×8 baking dish with butter and parchment paper.
- In a small saute pan set over medium heat, stir the coconut ocasionally until it turns golden in color. Remove from the heat and set aside.
- In a medium sized mixing bowl, melt the butter. Then, whisk in both sugars.
- Whisk in the egg and vanilla until very well combined.
- Add in the flour, oats, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and toasted coconut. Fold the mixture together with a rubber spatula just until no flour streaks remain.
- Pat ~3/4 of the dough down into an even layer in the prepared baking dish. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until the edges begin to brown.
- Remove the pan from the oven, and evenly sprinkle the chocolate chips over the dough to the best of your ability.
- Drizzle the caramel in an even layer over the chocolate chips.
- Use your hands to tear off small pieces of cookie dough and distribute them on top of the caramel. It will not completely cover the top – this is okay!
- Bake for an additional 20 minutes, or until the dough begins to turn golden brown.
- Let the cookie bars chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours before slicing. Serve and enjoy!
Nutrition
Please note that the nutrition facts are only an estimate and may vary based on different brands of ingredients and any substitutions made.