Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Bars

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Bars are a quick, comforting dessert recipe for days you’re craving a cookie AND FAST. They’re made with pantry staples, don’t require any chilling or scooping, and are the perfect base for all of your favorite cookie additions.

Create your own favorite cookie bar recipe with chocolate chips, nuts, dried fruits, candy bars, or sprinkles!

oatmeal chocolate chip cookie bars with five different toppings

Always Satisfying Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Bars

There are certain desserts I want on a special occasion: Chocolate Bundt Cake for my birthday, Sour Cream Cheesecake at Christmas, and Caramelized Apple Pie for Thanksgiving.

There are other desserts I could eat any day of the week, any time of year. Triple Chocolate Chip Cookies certainly fall under this category, and now I’ll add these Oatmeal Cookie Bars to the list as well.

These cookie bars are the kind of comforting, familiar treat you want to serve to your kids after a long day at school. They’re not too rich or too sweet, and the oatmeal gives them a hearty, chewy bite that pairs perfectly with a mug of cold milk.

Perhaps best of all, these Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Bars come together quickly with ingredients you probably already have on hand. They’re incredibly versatile and an excellent candidate for clearing out the pantry.

Start with chocolate chips, then experiment with whatever random bits and bobs you happen to have around. Add nuts, leftover Halloween candy, or dried fruit, or dress these up for the holidays with white chocolate chips and a scattering of festive sprinkles.

You can even try different mix-ins in the same pan! Have fun letting the whole family create their own perfect Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Bar.

slice of oatmeal chocolate chip bar

How To Make Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars

After much testing, I found THE PERFECT oatmeal bar recipe, which comes together in a single pan, is buttery, slightly sweet, and has just a hint of cinnamon. Here’s how to make them!

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9 x 13 inch pan.
  2. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat together butter, light brown sugar, granulated sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, salt, and cider vinegar until smooth.
  3. Add the eggs, beating after each addition, until the mixture is light and creamy.
  4. Sprinkle the baking soda and flour on top of the mixture and beat until combined, about 1 minute.
  5. Add the oats and chocolate chips or other additions, and stir to combine. Press the batter into the prepared pan.
  6. Bake for 32-35 minutes, or until edges are set, color is golden brown, and centers no longer look wet.
oatmeal chocolate chip cookie bar square with dried cherries and pecans on top

Tips for Perfect Oatmeal Bars

  • This recipe can easily be halved and baked in an 8 x 8 or 9 x9 inch square pan. Reduce the baking time to 24-27 minutes.
  • For the loveliest tops, stir 1 1/2 cups of the chocolate chips or other mix ins into the batter, then press the remaining 1/2 cup on top before baking.
  • If you want to cleanly remove the whole sheet of oatmeal bars, use a parchment sling. This makes it super easy to get neat and even cuts!
  • Wrap cooled oatmeal bars in saran wrap and store at room temperature. They’ll stay soft and chewy for 5 days!
  • These freeze well also! Check out this post for tips on freezing bar cookies.

Favorite Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Bar Variations:

This recipe can handle 2-2 1/2 cups of mix ins. I like to start with 1 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips, then add other flavors, but you can forego the chocolate chips entirely if you wish!

  • Pecans + Dried Cherries + Dark Chocolate Chips– a rif on these Salted Milk Chocolate Cherry Oatmeal Cookies!
  • Caramel Chips + Chocolate Chips + Chopped Pretzel– this one ended up being a favorite of mine!
  • Christmas Cookie Bars– White Chocolate Chips + Christmas Sprinkles
  • Chocolate Chips + M&Ms
  • Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Bars– Increase the cinnamon to 1 1/4 teaspoon and add 1/2 cups raisins, soaked in warm water or orange juice for 10 minutes, then drained before stirring into the batter

To make different variations in the same batch, add 1 cup of chocolate chips to the batter, press it into the pan, then press different mix-ins onto the top in rows.

oatmeal chocolate chip bars with M&Ms, sprinkles, nuts, and pretzels on top

More Oatmeal Cookie Recipes To Try:

slice of oatmeal cookie bar with M&Ms
oatmeal chocolate chip cookie bars with five different toppings

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Bars

Yield: 15
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes

These chewy, hearty Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Bars can be in an out of your oven in about 45 minutes! This versatile recipe is great for parties and easy to customize based on your taste!

Ingredients

  • 2 sticks unsalted butter (16 Tablespoons, 1 cup), softened
  • 1 cup light brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 2 teaspoons cider vinegar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 ยฝ cups all purpose flour
  • 3 cups rolled oats (not quick)
  • 2-2 1/2 cups chocolate chips and other mix ins

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9 x 13 inch pan.
  2. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat together butter, light brown sugar, granulated sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, salt, and cider vinegar until smooth.
  3. Add the eggs, beating after each addition, until the mixture is light and creamy.
  4. Sprinkle the baking soda and flour on top of the mixture and beat until combined, about 1 minute.
  5. Add the oats and chocolate chips or other additions, and stir to combine. Press the batter into the prepared pan.
  6. Bake for 33-38 minutes, or until edges are set, color is golden brown, and centers no longer look wet.

Notes

  • Baked oatmeal bars can be wrapped individually in saran wrap and frozen OR bake the bars in a parchment sling, remove from the pan, and freeze the entire slab double wrapped in saran wrap. Thaw overnight at room temperature. For more tips, check out how to freeze cookies.
  • This recipe can easily be halved and baked in an 8 or 9 inch square pan. Reduce the baking time to 24-28 minutes.
  • For different flavor options, see the post above.

Nutrition Information:
Yield: 15 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 331Total Fat: 16gSaturated Fat: 9gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 57mgSodium: 261mgCarbohydrates: 42gFiber: 2.5gSugar: 21gProtein: 5g

Please note nutritional information for my recipes is calculated by a third party service and provided as a courtesy to my readers. For the most accurate calculation, I always recommend running the numbers yourself with the specific products you use.

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