Oat Fudge Bars

Have you ever longingly looked at the oat fudge bar in the Starbucks display window, tempted by the fudgy deliciousness?

These copycat Starbucks oat fudge bars will fill that void in your life. Make these and people will think that you stopped at the nearest Starbucks to pick up their entire stock of Oat Fudge bars.

They are great for a crowd, freeze well and are very simple to make. This recipe makes a 9×13 pan, however I multiply everything by 1.5 to fill a larger rimmed baking sheet.

Ingredients:

For the Oat Mixture:

1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
1/2 cup coconut oil (can replace with another stick of butter)
2 large eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
3 cups old fashioned oats

For the Fudge:

1 cup sweetened condensed milk (about 1 container)
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Directions:

Grease a 9×13 pan.

Cream butter (and coconut oil), sugars and eggs in a large bowl

Mix in flour, baking soda and old fashioned oats. Mix well.

Take 3/4 of the mixture and press down into the pan similar to a crust. Ensure that the oats come up the edge of the pan slightly. This is what gives the fudge bars their delicious oat-ey crust.

In a saucepan, melt fudge ingredients. Pour sauce over oat crust.

Take remaining 1/4 of oat mixture and “blob” on top.

Bake for 25-30 minutes at 350˚F.

Science Fact of the Week:

You may be asking about the use of coconut oil here. Lately I’ve been swapping out half the butter, or half the margarine and using coconut oil instead. Coconut oil contains no trans fats, and is made of up healthier saturated fats (including Lauric acid). Lauric acid may lead to apoptosis (cell death) in cancer cells, therefore leading to possible health benefits.  It may also improve  hepatic (liver) antioxidant status and improve overall cardiovascular health.