These oatmeal fudge bars have a soft and chewy oatmeal cookie base topped with a rich chocolate fudge layer. They're exactly like the Starbucks oatmeal fudge bars - but even better since they're homemade! I tested these bars four times and had multiple people taste test them to get the flavor and texture just right.
These were my absolute favorite bakery item at Starbucks, I'm so disappointed that they got discontinued! But now you can make them at home and you can have the whole batch to yourself. Leftovers freeze great and you can defrost and enjoy them anytime you like.
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🍫 Why you'll LOVE this recipe
- Fudge layer: The rich chocolate fudge layer is chewy, decadent, and rich - while not being overly sweet.
- Oatmeal layer: The oatmeal cookie bottom is thick, soft, and chewy. It has a comforting sweet, oat vanilla flavor. So delicious!
- Like the Starbucks oat fudge bars: I developed this recipe to be exactly like the discontinued Starbucks bars. If they were also your favorite bakery item, you can now get to enjoy them again!
📝 Key ingredients
Read through for all the tips you will need for success!
Full steps and ingredients in recipe card below.
For the most accurate results, I tried to match the ingredients I used to the ingredients listed in the original Starbucks recipe as much as I could while keeping the ingredients as accessible as possible:
Rolled oats: I used old fashioned rolled oats in this recipe because they give you a chewier texture and more flavor. You can also use the same amount of quick oats or instant oats. Don't use oat groats or steel cut oats - they're too hard and you might chip a tooth.
Make these caramel apple pie cinnamon rolls with leftover rolled oats you may have. They have the most delicious oat crumble topping!
Chocolate chips: when testing the recipe, I found that a mixture of dark and semi-sweet chocolate gave the most similar results to how I remember the original oat fudge bars from Starbucks to taste like. Not too sweet and not too rich - the perfect in between. If you don't like dark chocolate, you can use milk chocolate but it just won't be as rich and accurate to the original Starbucks oat fudge bars.
Sweetened condensed milk: This gives the filling that smooth and chewy Fudge texture. Don't substitute it with evaporated milk - it won't work for this recipe.
Heavy cream: Helps loosen up the fudge, giving it a creamier, more decadent texture. The original ingredients list also included cream so that's what I used. You can substitute it with butter if that's what you have on hand.
Cornstarch: The secret to making soft and chewy oat bars. Arrowroot starch and potato starch will also work really well. Cornstarch was also an ingredient in the original Starbucks recipe!
👩🍳 How to make oatmeal fudge bars
Oat crust step by step
Prep: Line an 8" square baking pan with parchment paper, leaving overhang on the borders to lift it out. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C).
Step 1: In a large bowl or stand mixer, combine the butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, and salt. Beat together well with an electric mixer until creamy and smooth.
Step 2: Add egg and vanilla extract and beat until creamy.
Step 3: Add rolled oats and mix well. Sift flour, baking soda, and cornstarch into the cookie dough. Mix until combined. It will form a thick cookie dough.
Step 4: Set aside about half a cup of dough.
Press the rest of the dough into an even layer into the bottom of the lined baking pan. Set it aside while you work on the fudge layer.
Fudge filling step by step
Step 1: Combine chocolate chips, sweetened condensed milk, cream, vanilla, and salt in a small saucepan.
Step 2: Heat on low heat, stirring frequently to prevent the fudge from burning. Stir with a spatula until it becomes completely smooth.
Immediately remove the fudge from the heat and pour it into the prepared crust. Spread the fudge out into an even layer.
Step 3: Top the fudge with flattened pieces of the reserved cookie dough.
Bake for 24-26 minutes. The fudge layer should be crinkly on top and the cookie dough slightly golden brown. Don't over bake them or the bars will be hard and crispy.
Step 4: Let the bars cool completely to room temperature before slicing into 12 rectangular squares (four by three). For very clean cuts, pop the bars in the fridge for about one hour to chill before slicing with a clean, sharp knife. Don’t forget to clean the knife between each cut!
✔️ Expert fudge bars tips
- Be careful when cooking the fudge on the stove: keep the pot on low heat and stir frequently. Remove it from the heat as soon as it all comes together.
- Don't over bake the bars: They're ready when the cookie dough on top is slightly golden brown and the fudge looks a little puffed.
- Let the bars cool before slicing: They slice the best when they're cooled down and the fudge is firmer. I recommend popping them in the fridge for 30-60 minutes to get the perfect, even and clean slices.
🥄 Make ahead and storage
These bars store great in the fridge. They'll keep well in an airtight container, refrigerated, for up to 5 days. I recommend freezing them in a single layer before transferring them into an airtight container and freezing to store for up to 2 months.
🍫 Why these are the most accurate oat fudge bars to the Starbucks recipe
Before testing the recipe, I checked out the ingredients list on the discontinued Starbucks oat fudge bars to see what they were made of. I made sure that all of those ingredients made it to these oat fudge bars! The only ingredients that I left out were chocolate melts (I replaced those with real chocolate chips) and corn syrup (the recipe works great without it so I didn't think it really needed it).
I also tested these 4 times before settling on this specific formula, and had a whole group of taste testers try them! The oat fudge bars from Starbucks were my favorite bakery item, so I remember the taste and texture very vividly.
I tried so many combinations of chocolate for the fudge layer, but the one that tasted the best and was the most accurate to the original bars was a combination of dark and semi-sweet chocolate. I tried using just semi-sweet chocolate but it wasn't rich enough and tasted overly sweet.
☕ More copycat Starbucks recipes
These are easy Starbucks copycat recipes that you can also make at home:
📖 Recipe FAQs
Yes, use gluten free certified oats and replace the flour with 1:1 gluten free flour for the perfect gluten free oatmeal fudge bars.
They're so similar! The only big difference would really be that these are slightly thicker than what I remember the Starbucks ones to be. I matched the ingredients and tested them 4 times to really perfect them. I even cut them in rectangular shapes like the original Starbucks ones!
Yes, to make them in a larger baking pan like an 8" by 12" pan (or other similar sized pan), you'll have to double the recipe and watch the baking time. You might need to add an extra minute or two at the end.
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📖 Recipe
Oatmeal Fudge Bars
Equipment
Ingredients
Oatmeal Cookie Dough
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened
- ¼ cup brown sugar packed
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 ¾ cup rolled oats
- 1 cup all purpose flour 120g
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
Fudge Filling
- ½ cup semisweet chocolate chips
- ½ cup dark chocolate chips or chopped dark chocolate
- ½ cup sweetened condensed milk about ½ a 300ml can
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- 2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream or butter
Instructions
Oatmeal Cookie Dough
- Line an 8" square baking pan with parchment paper, leaving overhang on the borders to lift it out. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C).
- In a large bowl or stand mixer, combine the butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, and salt. Beat together well with an electric mixer until creamy and smooth.½ cup unsalted butter, ¼ cup brown sugar, ½ cup granulated sugar, ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- Add egg and vanilla extract and beat until creamy.1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract, 1 large egg
- Add rolled oats and mix well. Sift flour, baking soda, and cornstarch into the cookie dough. Mix until combined. It will form a thick cookie dough.1 ¾ cup rolled oats, 1 cup all purpose flour, ¼ teaspoon baking soda, 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- Set aside about half a cup of dough. Press the rest of the dough into an even layer into the bottom of the lined baking pan. Set it aside while you work on the fudge layer.
Fudge Filling
- Combine chocolate chips, sweetened condensed milk, cream, vanilla, and salt in a small saucepan.½ cup semisweet chocolate chips, ½ cup dark chocolate chips, ½ cup sweetened condensed milk, 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract, ¼ teaspoon sea salt, 2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
- Heat on low heat, stirring frequently to prevent the fudge from burning. Stir with a spatula until it becomes completely smooth.
- Immediately remove the fudge from the heat and pour it into the prepared crust. Spread the fudge out into an even layer.
- Top the fudge with flattened pieces of the reserved cookie dough.
- Bake for 24-26 minutes. The fudge layer should be crinkly on top and the cookie dough slightly golden brown. Don't over bake them or the bars will be hard and crispy.
- Let the bars cool completely to room temperature before slicing into 12 rectangular squares (four by three). For very clean cuts, pop the bars in the fridge for about one hour to chill before slicing with a clean, sharp knife. Don’t forget to clean the knife between each cut!
Video
Notes
- Stir the fudge constantly on low heat to prevent it from overcooking and burning.
- Don't over bake the bars so that they stay soft and decadent.
- Let the bars cool before slicing for clean, beautiful slices.
Lizzy
I love how easy your recipie was to follow, and that you mentioned what to look for when it's done! These are delicious!!!