Chocolate Chip Caramel Cookie Bars

Anyone who knows me knows I have a terrible sweet tooth.  That, combined with my love of baking and my genetic predisposition towards chubbiness means I am in a constant battle against those malevolent little creatures who sew your clothes tighter at night - calories.  I have lost, and gained back, the same 30 pounds four times in the last 15 years, and since I am currently on the wrong side of that cycle, I'm trying very hard to resist making all the delectable dessert recipes I've been accumulating on Pinterest for the last several years.  All that self control came to a screeching halt a few days ago, though, when someone posted one of those video recipes on Facebook and I was subjected to a vision of molten caramel flowing over chocolate chip cookie dough while I was innocently browsing my newsfeed looking at cat pictures.  My resistance instantly crumbled and I soon found myself in the kitchen making these bars.  OMG, they were SO worth it!  I didn't look at the calorie count on these until just now (it's even worse than I imagined) because I agree with the adage that if you know how many calories are in your dessert you're eating it wrong.  These are definitely not diet-friendly in any way, but they were so amazing I don't regret making them one bit.  I did, however, send 3/4 of them with my husband and daughter to share with their classmates and coworkers, and although I wish I still had some left, it's probably for the best that I don't because I would be eating every last one of them myself!

Chocolate Chip Caramel Cookie Bars

Prep time: 10 min Bake time: 30 min
serves 24

2 1/4 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips (I normally prefer milk chocolate, but these bars are so rich that I think semi-sweet or a combination is best)

5 oz evaporated milk
1 bag (14 oz) caramels
1/2 c. peanut butter

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 9 x 13 inch pan.

Combine flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat butter, sugar, brown sugar and vanilla in a large mixing bowl until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually mix in flour mixture. Stir in chocolate chips.

Spread half of cookie dough into the prepared pan. Bake for 8-10 minutes. Remove from oven.

While the cookie dough is baking, melt caramels and evaporated milk in a double boiler. Add peanut butter after caramels are melted. Melt thoroughly. Spread over baked cookie dough base.
With the remaining cookie dough, drop by spoonfuls on top of the caramel mixture.
Bake for 15-20 minutes or until light golden brown.

340 calories per serving.  Click here for more nutritional info and shopping list!