Magic Cookie Bars

Magic Cookie Bars start with a thick graham cracker crust and are loaded with milk and white chocolate chips, M&M’s, caramel bits, and oats. Sweetened condensed milk makes the “magic” happen by holding everything together and making these bars ultra gooey, sweet, and tasty!

Try our other variations on Magic Cookie Bars next time — these 7 Layer Bars or these 7 Layer Pumpkin Bars.

Magic Cookie Bars

These Magic Cookie Bars are every sugar lover’s dream — basically a mash-up of a ton of candy with even more sugar enveloping everything in a thick gooey coating.

Fair warning — these bars are ridiculously sweet and rich. If you aren’t a total sugar lover, you may be more drawn to these Chewy Granola Bars. They’re still sweet with chocolate and M&M’s, but more balanced with oats and peanut butter. They’re also naturally sweetened with honey and won’t leave you in a total sugar coma like these magic bars might! Just trying to be transparent!

Graham cracker crust tips

• Let the melted butter cool: Once the butter is melted, it needs to return to room temperature. If the butter is hot, it will melt the graham cracker crumbs, and that will cause a greasy crust. 
• Add salt. The salt in the crust helps cut through and balance the sweetness in these bars. While you can decrease the amount, I don’t recommend leaving it out entirely.
• Blend crumbs thoroughly. To be sure there aren’t large chunks of graham crackers in the crust (which will affect how nicely you can cut these Magic Cookie Bars), thoroughly blend the graham crackers until they are in fine crumbs. Add any large chunks back into the blender and keep on blending. Depending on the type of blender you have, you may want to blend the crackers in batches.
• Measure the crumbs. While it’s easy to just count graham cracker sheets to throw in the blender, there can be a good amount of variation from cracker to cracker and brand to brand. For a fool-proof crust, measure the crumbs to be sure you have the correct amount.
• Press down firmly. I like to use the bottom of a one-cup measuring cup to compress the crust and press it into a nice even layer. The tighter and more compact the crust, the better the bars cut.

Magic Cookie Bar Toppings

After the crust, here’s what we add on top and a few notes about the ingredients:

• Quick oats. While you can use old-fashioned oats, we do like quick oats best in these bars — they soften better and are less over-powering than old-fashioned. Don’t use steel-cut oats.
• Milk chocolate chips. We love milk chocolate’s richness and sweetness, but any type of chocolate works here. If you like dark chocolate best, use dark chocolate. If you want to cut down on sweetness, use semi-sweet chocolate.
• White chocolate chips. We love white chocolate in these bars, but if you aren’t a fan, use butterscotch or even peanut butter chips instead.
• Caramel bits. These miniature caramel balls are a unique magic cookie bar addition, and we love them! These caramel bits are typically found on the baking aisle among other baking chips or caramels. They can also sometimes be found in the candy aisle with similar caramel candies.
• M&M’s®. I don’t recommend large ones– peanut, peanut butter, or some of the special flavors– because they don’t hold in the bars as nicely.
• Sweetened condensed milk. This is the “magic” ingredient that holds everything together and makes these bars gooey and sweet. Be sure to get the full-fat variety and avoid sugar-free cans. Be sure evaporated milk and/or dulce de leche don’t accidentally make their way in your cart — these cans all look so similar!

Magic Cookie Bar Tips

• Line the pan with parchment paper. These magic cookie bars are nearly impossible to remove without first lining the pan. Don’t line the pan with foil or wax paper for this recipe. Leave an overhang of parchment paper to easily remove the bars and cut into them on a cutting board.
• Add your favorites. Feel free to swap out some of the candies/baking chips for the ones you prefer. As long as sizing and overall quantities remain consistent these bars should work great. You could even try swapping graham cracker crumbs for Nilla® Wafers or Teddy Graham® crumbs for a unique crust.
• Gently press in the toppings. After all the candies are on piled on top of the sweetened condensed milk, gently press everything into an even layer. This ensures that the toppings will stick into the sweetened condensed milk nicely and the Magic Cookie Bars look nice.

More Dessert Bars

• Cookie Bars with chocolate chips
• Carmelitas oatmeal caramel bars
• Scotcheroos with a chocolate topping
• Brownie Oreo Ice Cream Bars with a brownie base
• Apple Crumble Bars with caramel center

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5 from 3 votes

Magic Cookie Bars

By Chelsea Lords

Magic Cookie Bars have a buttery graham crust and are packed with chocolate chips, M&M’s, caramel bits, oats, and gooey sweetened condensed milk. Sweet, gooey, and irresistibly delicious!

Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes minutes

Servings: 36 bars

Equipment

• Baking pan 9 x 13-inch
• Parchment paper

Ingredients 

USMetric

 

1x2x3x

• ▢ 12 tablespoons unsalted butter 3/4 cup, melted
• ▢ 2-1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs measure when crushed into crumbs; about 20–22 crackers
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt or 1/4 teaspoon table salt
• ▢ 1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk full-fat, see note 1
• ▢ 1/2 cup quick oats
• ▢ 2 cups chocolate chips see note 2
• ▢ 1/2 cup white chocolate chips
• ▢ 3/4 cup caramel bits see note 3
• ▢ 1 cup M&M’s

Instructions 

• Preheat oven to 350°F (176°C). Line a 9x13-inch pan with parchment paper, leaving some overhang for easy bar removal. Don’t line it with wax paper or foil. Melt the butter in the microwave and set aside to return to room temperature—using hot butter makes the crust greasy.
• Coarsely break up graham crackers and add to a powerful blender (you may need to do this in batches). Pulse/blend until all crackers are fine crumbs. Measure the crumbs and add to a large bowl, along with the salt. Stir in the melted-but-cooled butter and stir to create a thick mixture. Press this mixture into the prepared pan and use the bottom of a flat measuring cup to firmly press the crust into an even layer.
• Pour the entire can of sweetened condensed milk over the graham cracker crust. Spread it into an even layer with the back of a spoon. Evenly top the condensed milk with quick oats, chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, caramel bits, and the M&M’s. Gently press everything into an even layer.
• Bake in the preheated oven until the edges are golden brown, about 23–28 minutes. In my oven, the bars are done right at 25 minutes.
• Remove from oven and allow the bars to cool completely—about 1–2 hours. Speed up the cooling process by putting them in the fridge after they’ve cooled for about 20 minutes at room temperature. Using the parchment overhang, remove the bars and use a sharp knife to make decisive cuts in the bars. Run the knife under warm water, dry on a kitchen towel, and repeat for each cut.

Video

Recipe Notes

Note 1: I love the richness and sweetness of milk chocolate, but any type of chocolate works, such as dark or semi-sweet chocolate (if you want to cut down on sweetness).

Note 2: It’s easy to pick evaporated milk or a similar product by mistake, but only sweetened condensed milk works in this recipe. Be sure to get the full-fat variety and avoid sugar-free. I use and love Eagle Brand® (not sponsored).

Note 3: Caramel bits are typically found in the baking aisle among other baking chips or caramels or in the candy aisle with similar caramel candies. You can replace these with 1/2 cup additional white chocolate chips or butterscotch chips.

Storage: Store leftover cookie bars in an airtight container separated by layers of parchment or wax paper. Store in the fridge if the temperature is warm or on the counter for cooler temperatures. (There is nothing about these bars that requires refrigeration, but if you prefer them to be less gooey and more firm, store them in the fridge.) They are best enjoyed within 3–5 days.

Nutrition

Calories: 180kcal | Carbohydrates: 23g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 16mg | Sodium: 110mg | Potassium: 85mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 17g | Vitamin A: 170IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 60mg | Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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