Chocolate Oatmeal Almost Candy Bars

After two days of bars without chocolate (!?!) it’s time to get some chocolate in here. Dorie Greenspan’s Baking: From My Home to Yours is one of my favorite cookbooks. The thing has some heft. It’s bigger than a sheet of paper and a couple inches thick. And it’s HEAVY! The pictures in it are beautiful and I love reading Dorie’s little stories before each recipe.

I told Hubby that I was thinking about these bars. I know the TWD group did them not too long ago, but instead of showing him a picture, I just told him about the ingredients in the bar. He just said “eh” when I told him they had chocolate, peanuts, raisins, and oats. I have to admit, I’m not a huge raisin fan myself, but I was definitely intrigued by the combination and decided to just go for it.

Boy am I glad I did! I think everyone who got to enjoy these gems was glad I didn’t just keep searching for another recipe after Hubby was less than enthusiastic about the ingredient list. The raisins give a nice chewiness and sweetness without overpowering the bars. The peanuts and oats give a nice contrast of textures. Overall this bar has it all. They’re not overly sweet and definitely hit the spot.

On top of all that, I’ve been totally digging bars with layers recently. I’m not quite sure why but I have been gravitating towards them. I’m sure you’ll see more layered bars in the future!

One Year Ago: Crockpot Pulled Pork
Two Years Ago: Lemon Curd Cookies

Check out my entire week of bars and brownies here.

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Chocolate Oatmeal Almost Candy Bars

Yield: ~36

Ingredients:

For the oatmeal layer
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 cups brown sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
3 cups old-fashioned oats
1 cup salted peanuts, coarsely chopped

For the chocolate layer
14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 Tbsp unsalted butter
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup moist, plump raisins
3/4 cup coarsely chopped peanuts, preferably salted

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. Line a 9x13 pan with parchment paper and place the pan on a baking sheet.

To make the oatmeal layer
Whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.

Beat the butter on medium speed until it is soft and creamy. Add the brown sugar and beat for 2 minutes, then add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each one. Beat in the vanilla. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients, mixing just until they disappear. Still on low speed, or working by hand with a rubber spatula, stir in the oats and chopped peanuts.

Set aside 1 1/2 cups of the mixture, then turn the remaining dough into the buttered pan. Gently and evenly press the dough over the bottom of the pan. Set aside while you prepare the next layer.

To make the chocolate layer
Put the condensed milk, chocolate chips, butter, and salt in a bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and stir occasionally until the milk is warm and the chocolate and butter are melted. Remove the bowl from the pan of water and stir in the vanilla, raisins, and peanuts.

Pour the warm chocolate over the oatmeal crust, then scatter the remaining oatmeal mixture over the top.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the topping is golden brown and the chocolate layer is dull and starting to come away from the sides of the pan. Transfer the baking pan to a rack and cool for about 2 hours.

Using the parchment paper, pull the bars out of their pan and place on a rack. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour before cutting.

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20 Responses to “Daring Bakers take on the Yule Log”

  1. #
    1
    Beth G. — December 22, 2007 at 7:58 pm

    Looks great!! I love the history info too 🙂 Congrats you did an awesome job!

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    2
    Gigi — December 22, 2007 at 8:28 pm

    Love the history info and your buttercream looks so silky. Nicely done!

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    3
    MrsPresley — December 23, 2007 at 12:18 am

    good job! rolls like the yule log and the pumpkin roll really aren’t too hard to make, but they’re great to bring to get togethers b/c everyone loves them 🙂

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    4
    Claire — December 23, 2007 at 2:26 am

    Congrats on your first “real” yule log. I wasn’t crazy about the buttercream either, though I did like the coffee flavor!

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    5
    marias23 — December 23, 2007 at 2:27 am

    Yum! Very nice, creamy-looking buttercream. Looks delish! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

  6. #
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    SMJ — December 23, 2007 at 3:04 am

    I went for raspberry inside too – and agree that chocolate frosting would be tastier. Good job!

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    7
    Lis — December 23, 2007 at 3:59 am

    You did an awesome job, Jen!

    Your log turned out so pretty – as did the mushrooms!

    Way to go!

    xoxo

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    8
    Hilda — December 23, 2007 at 2:57 pm

    Your log looks wonderful, so silky creamy. Happy Holidays!

  9. #
    9
    ~Amber~ — December 23, 2007 at 4:19 pm

    Your log looks awesome. Congratulations on completing the challenge.

  10. #
    10
    Meryl — December 24, 2007 at 2:58 am

    Very pretty! I thought this one was harder than the “Buche” I made in French class too.

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    11
    Lunch Buckets — December 24, 2007 at 5:35 am

    I love your texturing – nice log!

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    12
    Peabody — December 24, 2007 at 9:24 am

    Job well done. I made it with chocolate buttercream and I think it would have gone lovely with raspberry.

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    13
    Cheryl — December 24, 2007 at 6:39 pm

    I love the idea of the raspberry filling with the coffee buttercream. That must have tasted incredible.

  14. #
    14
    Dolores — December 26, 2007 at 6:01 am

    As worldly as I thought I was at the time, I never could have attempted anything this complex in high school. You did a great job with your… it looks luscious!

    I hope you had a joyous holiday, and that 2008 brings you health and happiness, laughter and love.

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    15
    Julius — December 26, 2007 at 7:04 am

    Great bûche de Noël and I loved reading your post.

    Happy Holidays!

    Julius from Occasional Baker

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    16
    Tartelette — December 27, 2007 at 6:11 pm

    You aced this challenge like a pro! It looks gorgeous!
    Hope you had a wonderful Christmas!

  17. #
    17
    Deborah — December 28, 2007 at 1:04 am

    Your filling looks and sounds delicious! I went with chocolate for the outside, and loved it. Great job!

  18. #
    18
    Rosa's Yummy Yums — December 28, 2007 at 3:39 pm

    A very pretty log! Well done!

    Cheers,

    Rosa

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    19
    Jen Yu — December 31, 2007 at 1:23 am

    Nice work there. I love the combination of raspberry and chocolate – mmmm! Congrats on your challenge and happy new year 🙂

    jen at use real butter

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    20
    Quellia — January 5, 2008 at 3:43 am

    Oooh I love the idea of the raspberry in the log!

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