Oatmeal Fudge Bars

A friend of mine makes these all the time.

In fact, she just brought me two plates of them a couple weeks after I gave birth to baby Max (two plates because I have a BIG family now). Kind of a "Good job for having such a ridiculously good looking baby!" gift.

Well, being the health conscience nursing mother I am, I made sure to eat one of those plates by myself... you know, take one for the team, make sure the family cuts down on their sweet intake and all that jazz.

They were delicious, as always. So, naturally, a week or so later I found myself craving them. Only, it was Sunday and my friend was at church so I had to use my google search to try and find a recipe to replicate them.

I can't say this is the recipe she uses, but they look and taste EXACTLY as I remember them. Also, it is said that Starbucks offers a treat just like these on their menu. (The recipe I used said it was a "Starbucks copycat") I can't verify that these taste like those offered and Starbucks because I've never been. But, if they do offer these there they've got to be a best seller.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup sugar
  
• 1 cup brown sugar
  
• 1 cup butter
  
• 2 eggs
• 2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
  
• 3 cups oats
  
• 1 can sweetened condensed milk
  
• 2 cups semi sweet chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup butter
  
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
  

Directions:

1. Cream butter, sugar and eggs.
2. Mix flour, soda and oats and add slowly to creamed mixture.
3. Spread 3/4 of this into 9x13 pan.
4. Melt remaining ingredients in a saucepan (adding the vanilla add the very end after everything is melted) and pour over dough in pan.
5. Blob the remaining oat mixture on top.
6. Bake at 350° for 25 minutes.

The oat batter and fudge filling will come out rather gooey. Do not fret the oats sets up nicely. The fudge does however always remaining deliciously soft and fudgey.
Naturally.
If you wait for them to cool they will firm up but my husband loved it straight out of the oven all hot and gooey.
To each his own.

*My only change that I might make is to instead put the mixture on a sheet tray instead of a 9x13, making for thinner bars. Either way they are ridiculously delicious but none together healthy. Also, perhaps to save money (not calories) I might whittle the butter down 3/4 cup in the batter and 1/4 cup in the fudge filling. I haven't tried it yet so I'm not entirely sure it won't be missed ;)