Carmelita Cookies are the ULTIMATE oatmeal chocolate chip cookie stuffed with gooey caramel! This cookie recipe is a twist on the classic cookie bar.
Make sure to try my Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies too!
I made these cookies back in 2013, but I thought the pictures needed a little bit of a spruce up because they are AMAZING! They’re a soft, buttery oatmeal chocolate chip cookie with gooey layer of caramel baked inside!
These stuffed cookies are easy to make because we use a little shortcut for the caramel filling! We used a caramel filled chocolate candy (like Rolos) in the middle to do the heavy lifting here! They bake up beautifully if you follow some of the important tips below!
What Are Carmelitas?
Traditionally, Carmelitas are a cookie bar recipe. The crust and topping is a quick, buttery oat cookie with a layer of chocolate chips and caramel in the middle. They’re a quick, gorgeous cookie bar that is always a crowd pleaser.
I KNEW I had to make a cookie version of the bars, and they turned out absolutely perfect!
What Ingredients Do You Need?
You might have most of these ingredients in your pantry now! Here’a list:
- butter
- light brown sugar
- eggs
- vanilla extract
- baking soda
- kosher salt
- all purpose flour
- quick oats…you can also use old fashioned (or rolled oats) if that’s all you have, but I prefer smaller, quick oats, for these cookies for best results.
- semi-sweet chocolate chips
- caramel filled chocolate candies
What Kind Of Caramel Candies Are Recommended?
I have made these cookies with different kinds of caramel candy.
- Rolo. These seem to be the easiest to find, and they work perfectly!
- Caramello. These come in bar form, and you can easily freeze the bars and break them into squares to use in the cookies!
- Dove Promises. They make these ina few different caramel variations and they would all work great!
- Ghirardeilli Squares. These are a little larger than the other candies I’ve mentioned, but they would still work! Just make sure they’re all inside the cookie dough.
- Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy and then add in the eggs, vanilla, baking soda, and salt and mix for 1 minute until incorporated and smooth.
- Turn your mixer to low and add in the flour and then the oats.
- Next add in your chocolate chips until combined. You could stop here and bake these as-is and you would have great oatmeal chocolate chip cookies…BUT since we’re going the extra mile today…
- Chill your dough in the fridge. AND your candies in the freezer. You need both to be cold, so give them at least an hour, but if you want to make this the day before that works too!
- When you’re ready, portion out the dough using a medium scoop and form the dough around one caramel candy. Seal the dough completely around the candy so the caramel doesn’t ooze out.
- Bake until edges are golden and tops have just set and let the cookies cool on baking sheet for 4-5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to finish cooling.
Why Do You Have To Freeze The Candy?
This step is one I HIGHLY recommend for these cookies. The frozen candy has less of a chance of melting out of the chocolate during baking if you start out frozen.
Caramel, if it does get baked, can burn quickly and get hard, so starting with a frozen candy helps prevent this from happening and escaping from the dough.
The Cooling Process…
Allow these cookies to cool on the baking sheet for as long as you can. The caramel candy sinks to the bottom of the dough while baking (totally normal) and if you try and mix the cookie before it’s cooled, the candy may drop out of the cookie.
The caramel inside needs to set back up because it will be gooey and because a mess if moved while hot!
Looking For More Caramel Stuffed Desserts? Try These…
- Salted Caramel Skillet Cookie
- Caramel Stuffed Truffle Cookies
- Double Chocolate Stuffed Caramel Cookies
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 20 minutes + chill time
- Yield: 36 cookies 1x
- Category: Cookies
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: Dessert
Description
These caramel filled oatmeal chocolate chip cookies are a spin on a classic Carmelita Cookie Bar!
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups butter, room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups light brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
- 3 cups quick oats
- 2 cups chocolate chips
- 36 unwrapped Rolo candies, frozen (or any other caramel filled individual caramel filled chocolate candy)
Instructions
- In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment mix the butter and brown sugar together on medium speed for 2 minutes.
- Add in the eggs, vanilla, baking soda, and salt and mix for 1 minute until incorporated and smooth.
- Turn mixer to low and add in flour, mixing until just combined. And then adding the oats, turning up the mixer to medium if necessary until evenly incorporated.
- With the mixer on low, add in the chocolate chips until combined.
- Cover the dough with plastic wrap and chill dough in the refrigerator for at least an hour. During this time freeze your caramel filled candies.
- When dough is ready, preheat your oven to 350°F and line baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Using a medium (2- tablespoon) cookie scoop portion out the dough. Press a caramel candy into the dough, wrapping the dough around the candy and sealing it, forming a ball. Place your dough balls about 2- inches apart on lined baking sheet.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes until edges are golden and tops have just set.
- Let cookies cool on baking sheet for 4-5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to finish cooling.
Notes
Freezing candies and chilling dough is recommended because the caramel candy will sink to the bottom of the cookie and stick to your pan.
If you forget to freeze the candies and chill the dough, allow the cookies to cool completely on the baking sheet.
Nutrition
- Serving Size:
- Calories: 230
- Sugar: 19.5 g
- Sodium: 136.8 mg
- Fat: 11.4 g
- Carbohydrates: 29.8 g
- Protein: 3 g
- Cholesterol: 27.9 mg
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I. Must. Have. These. Now. Can you use old-fashioned oats? I think that’s what I have here. Otherwise, I have all the ingredients without running to the store.
It would probably work, they just might be a little chewier 🙂
I used large flake oats and just blended them a little to get them smaller. They worked fine but not sure if that’s why the cookies stayed puffed up instead of flattening out. Still delicious!
I hate our bunk bed set for this very same reason. After an unfortunate episode where I climbed up the ladder and BROKE one of the rungs, in front of the other 3 people in our family, and the husband saying, “Honey, you aren’t as little as you think you are” (I am thin, by golly!), and the girls laughing their heads off….. the girls put their own stupid top bunk sheets on now. I needed these cookies then… to help me eat away my upset-ness! LOL!
You are singing to my soul with this one… both with these gorgeous, sumptuous cookies, and with your commentary about your headspace being empty/focused on mission critical issues like The Bach, Golden Globes, Princess Kate’s new portrait, etc. since the holidays. Now that I know that I’m not alone, I choose to eat cookies and read my People mag in a guilt-free zone. Thank you!
Disaster! I made these for a potluck at work and they did not look anything as beautiful as yours. What did I do wrong? They tasted yummy, but I was thoroughly embarrassed about the presentation- they looked like pathetic pancakes. I am going to try them again because they are so scrumptious, but I wish I knew what I did incorrectly.
Did you chill the dough?
I did 🙁 I waited over an hour like you said and also froze the rollos. Despite the appearance, everyone at work says they were a hit:) I am just too OCD to let it go. I simply must get them to look as lovely as yours.
I had a bunk bed and hated changing the sheets, too, so I did it like once a year. Ssshhhhhh! Don’ t tell anybody. I didn ‘ t like making the bed either, so I didn’ t…. I didn’ t know those cookie- bars were called carmelitas but Damn I love ‘ em. Yours look great!
Nice blog.. Thanks for sharing this information with us
Rolos are my favorite. I must have these.
Oh yes yes yes… does it get any better than these cookies? I don’t think so.
Fabulous, just fabulous! I love Rolos and thank you for all of the helpful tips about freezing the cookie dough and the candies! I have Pinned these and cannot wait to make them myself!
Well I think I fell in love with you thinking about the mattress taco
..ha-ha! And I wa