These Peanut Butter Caramel Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars are decadent and rich with a heavenly caramel layer that takes these bars over the top! Made with rich peanut butter, gooey caramel, crunchy toffee bites and oaths, these bars have a unique combination of textures and flavors that is sure to satisfy every dessert fan, making them a must-bake for any occasion!
Love making cookies bars? You can’t miss my Reese’s Peanut Butter S’mores Oatmeal Bars, Chocolate Chip Cookie Cheesecake Bars, and don’t forget these Chocolate Raspberry Crumb Bars!
Peanut Butter Caramel Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars Recipe
I hope you’re ready to have your dessert dreams come true with these cookie bars! These bars combine all of the best things you could put in a dessert: creamy peanut butter, rich caramel, crunchy toffee, and, of course, melty chocolate. It’s like a flavor explosion in every bite!
And let’s not forget the chewy cookie base fortified with oats, giving it just the right balance of softness and structure. This dessert is rich, it’s sweet, and it’s exactly what you want to sink your teeth into.
Now, I’m a huge fan of cookie bars for so many reasons. Not only are they ridiculously easy to make (hello, time savers!), but they pack way more punch than your average cookie. For those of us juggling life and don’t have an hour to bake batch after batch of cookies, bars are where it’s at.
These are perfect for a crowd, or just a sweet indulgence for yourself. Cut them into bite-sized pieces or go all in with monster-sized bars – you won’t regret it!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Layers of Flavor: These cookie bars are a flavor bomb and over the top in the best way possible. Two layers of chocolate chip cookie dough (made with peanut butter and oats) are separated by a glorious layer of caramel – perfection!
- Irresistible Flavor Combo: If you’re a fan of peanut butter, caramel, toffee, and chocolate, this recipe is a match made in dessert heaven. Each bite delivers a perfect blend of sweet, salty, and chewy goodness that will make it hard to resist sneaking little pieces throughout the day!
- Crowd-Pleasing Dessert: Whether you’re serving them at a party, a family gathering, or just treating yourself, these bars are guaranteed to wow everyone. They’re easy to slice into bite-sized pieces, making them ideal for sharing, and they look as impressive as they taste!
How to Make These Peanut Butter Caramel Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
You will probably be shocked by how easy these bars are to make! You’ll start by whipping up a simple cookie dough base, layering it with a rich caramel-toffee filling, and topping it off with more cookie dough before baking to golden perfection.
As always, you can find the full printable recipe card at the end of this post.
- Place the caramels, butter, and sweetened condensed milk in bowl or small saucepan.
- Melt in microwave or over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until caramels have fully melted.
- Combine flour, oats, baking powder and salt in a small mixing bowl.
- Cream butter, peanut butter and sugar together in a large mixing bowl.
- Mix eggs in one at a time.
- Add in vanilla extract.
- Add in the flour mixture.
- Mix just until combined.
- Stir in the chocolate chips, peanut butter chips and toffee bits.
- Spread two-thirds of the dough on the bottom of the pan.
- Pour caramel mixture evenly over the dough.
- Drop the remaining dough on top by the teaspoon and bake at 350°F until baked through, about 30 minutes. Let cool completely before cutting and serving.
Storage Information
- Room Temperature: Store the bars in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
- Refrigerator: Refrigerate for up to one week
- Freezer: Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature when you’re ready to enjoy!
Variations to Try
- Use gluten-free oats and a gluten-free flour blend in place of the regular flour to make these bars gluten-friendly without sacrificing flavor or texture.
- Swap out the peanut butter for almond butter or cashew butter for a different flavor profile.
- Add nuts like chopped peanuts or pecans for extra crunch.
- Sprinkle a little sea salt over the caramel layer for a delicious sweet-and-salty combo that will elevate the flavor.
What can I use as a substitute for toffee?
If you don’t have toffee bits, you can use chopped-up Heath or Skor bars, or even chopped pretzels for a salty crunch.
Can I use a different type of chocolate?
Yes! Feel free to swap out the semi-sweet chocolate chips for dark, milk, or white chocolate, or even a mix for added variety.
Trish’s Tips
- For easy removal and cleanup, make sure you line your baking pan with parchment paper, leaving some overhang. This way, you can lift the bars out in one piece once they’ve cooled.
- Keep an eye on the bars as they bake. They should be golden on top but still slightly soft in the center, as they’ll continue to set as they cool.
- When spreading the cookie dough layers, use your hands or the back of a spoon to press the dough evenly across the pan for uniform bars. You can lightly grease your hands to prevent sticking. For the top layer, just drop teaspoon to tablespoon size pieces of dough across the top evenly. It doesn’t have to be super uniform.
More Delicious Bar Recipes
Peanut Butter Caramel Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
Ingredients
Caramel Filling
- 11 ounces caramels
- 14 ounces sweetened condensed milk
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
Cookie Dough
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 cup old fashioned oats
- 2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 12 tablespoons unsalted butter
- ½ cup creamy peanut butter not natural
- 2 cups light brown sugar
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1 cup Reese’s peanut butter chips
- 1 cup Heath toffee bits
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 9×13 inch baking dish with parchment paper and set aside.
- Unwrap caramels and place in a small saucepan or microwave safe bowl along with butter and sweetened condensed milk.11 ounces caramels, 14 ounces sweetened condensed milk, 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- Melt in microwave at medium heat in 30 second bursts or over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until caramels have fully melted and the mixture is nice and smooth. Set aside.
- Combine flour, oats, baking powder, and salt in a small mixing bowl. Set aside.2 cups all purpose flour, 1 cup old fashioned oats, 2 ½ teaspoons baking powder, 1 teaspoon salt
- Cream butter, peanut butter and brown sugar together in a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer.12 tablespoons unsalted butter, ½ cup creamy peanut butter, 2 cups light brown sugar
- Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each egg. Add in vanilla extract.2 large eggs, 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- Add the flour mixture slowly stirring until well combined.
- Stir in the chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, and toffee bits.2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips, 1 cup Reese’s peanut butter chips, 1 cup Heath toffee bits
- Spread two-thirds of the dough on the bottom of the pan.
- Slowly pour caramel mixture evenly over the dough.
- Drop the remaining dough on top by the teaspoon. It doesn’t have to be perfect!
- Bake for about 30 minutes or until golden brown on top and set. Let cool completely and then cut into bars.
Video
Notes
- Room Temperature: Store the bars in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
- Refrigerator: Refrigerate for up to one week
- Freezer: Freeze for up to 3 months—just thaw at room temperature when you’re ready to enjoy!
What can I use as a substitute for toffee? If you don’t have toffee bits, you can use chopped-up Heath or Skor bars, or even chopped pretzels for a salty crunch.
Tools and Equipment (affiliate links): 9×13 Baking Dish | Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Electric Mixer (Hand Mixer or Stand Mixer) |
Please see post above for more information, recipe tips and frequently asked questions.
Nutrition
Originally published April 27, 2014.
Evanna says
Made these bars. Cooked for 40min. Turned to mush. Going to try to refrigerate them. Anyone else have this issue?
Beth says
Is there a way to substitute the butter and condensed milk? My son is allergic to goes milk
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
I really don’t know… Is there a dairy free SCM product out there maybe? Shoot!
Cinnamon says
I just made these and they didn’t look like yours at all the drops of dough that I put on top didn’t cover all of the Carmel it looks like I just dropped cookies on top of the Carmel. What did I do wrong?
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
You might have used a little too much cookie dough on the bottom layer. The caramel layer does NOT need to be completely covered though so don’t worry about that 🙂
MamaSchick says
I made these sinful little beauties tonight. Oh. My. Word. Deliciousness overload. They are so rich and yummy!
A few things:
I can’t eat gluten, so I used a gluten free 1-to-1 substitute for the flour, and gluten free oats. This recipe worked great because it’s so packed full of yumminess nobody noticed.
I also only had ¼ cup of creamy peanut butter left, so I finished it off with ¼ cup crunchy peanut butter and it worked fine.
I also calculated Weight Watchers Smart Points (a huge mistake) and if you cut them into 15 bars they are 27 points EACH!
It was worth every sinful bite! Hahahaha!
Thank you for sharing this recipe. I am going to cut them into smaller portions and freeze a few of these for those days when I need a little spoiling 🙂
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Love that you made the recipe work for YOU! This recipe actually makes 24 bars so a few less WW points if you make them a bit smaller 😉 SO glad you gave it a try!
Bryn says
How do you think these would be with cookie butter instead of peanut butter and maybe butterscotch or toffee chips instead of on chips? I have a friend who hates pb but I’d love to make these for a potluck
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
I have heard that cookie butter or sunbutter is a great substitute in this recipe. I haven’t tried it myself but I don’t see why it wouldn’t work. And yes, butterscotch, more toffee chips or even more chocolate chips would be the perfect substitute for the peanut butter chips. Let me know if you give it a try!
Sabrina says
what a fun recipe! Love all of the layers in these bars, they’re like three cookies, one caramel, one oatmeal and the other toffee chocolate chip all bound together, love it, thank you!
Shelley says
These. Are. AMAZING!! I’m literally eating and drooling as I type this! To be honest, the original carmelita recipe doesn’t do all that much for me but your variation…WOW!! I’ll be making these again for sure!! Thank you so much for sharing! 🙂
Jenny says
The caramel sauce this recipe made was so nice and smooth! I’ll have to keep this recipe around for the next time I need caramel for something. Thanks!
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
It’s one of my favorites Jenny! So glad you like it!
Kendra Mason says
I made these and added some walnuts for some crunch and saltiness to the bar also. AMAZING! Thank you for creating such a wonderful recipe!
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Oooh! Walnuts! Great idea! Thanks for stopping by and leaving such a sweet comment!
Eileen Madson says
Getting ready to make these. Have one comment … THANK YOU for not putting the calorie count!!!!!
Janet says
These look so yummy!
Do you have any suggestions for a substitution for the sweetened condensed milk?
Thanks!
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
I don’t Janet – is it because it’s not available where you’re at?
Eden Passante says
Are you serious with these?! They look amazing! Definitely need to make these ASAP!
Bruce says
I baked a batch of these cookie bars earlier this autumn but wound up freezing half the batch and rationing myself to 3 bars a week due to my concerns about the peanut butter and the un-needed extra calories. So, question one – how many calories in one serving? Two, how many could be saved if Splenda replaces the brown sugar? Three, any other effects from making that change? Four, what’s the secret to separating the baked bars from the parchment paper without waste?
Kris says
Just made these! I think they are one of the best things I have ever made. I had to share them with the neighbors so I wouldn’t eat them all. Thank you for the recipe.
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
That made my day Kris 🙂 I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe!
HYWAY says
O M G i can`t wait to make these bars!!! They have everything that i simply adore. THANK YOU! you have just made love to all of my seances.
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
LOL! Enjoy!