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Chocolate Chocolate and More!

Welcome to my baking adventures.

December 29, 2012

Magic Turtle Bars

Magic Turtle Bars-Chocolate, Caramel and Pecans, come together in this fabulous Magic Bar

Magic Turtle Bars-Chocolate, Caramel and Pecans, come together in this fabulous Magic Bar

Wow, who knew taking a few days off for the holidays would put me so out of whack? The kids may be on vacation from school and the hubby did get a few extra days off, but as the mom, I didn’t get any time off. The laundry still needed to be done, the family still wants to eat and then there’s all the “extra” associated with the holidays. The decorating, the big meals, feeding 9 for 6 days, even if breakfast is cereal or bagels, still adds up when it comes time to do the dishes.

I wouldn’t trade a moment of it. The house still needs to be put back in shape, the decorations now need to be taken down and stored. I am making everyone eat leftovers, so at least I’m getting out of preparing “new” meals. Besides, our turkey was to die for and we also had a ham so there’s plenty! I’d like to tell you we still have plenty of sweets around but, the supply is quickly dwindling.

Magic Turtle Bars-Chocolate, Caramel and Pecans, come together in this fabulous Magic Bar

In addition to making my family eat leftovers the past 3 nights, I also hid these bars from them. Well, not exactly hid, but I did put them in a solid (not see through) container, in the back, behind all the other treats. Technically, I might have buried them, just so I could keep them for myself. You can’t blame me. Chocolate, caramel and pecans, the greatest combination ever! No one suffered. I made sure they had the Magic Christmas Bars, Mexican Wedding Cookies, Grandma’s Sugar Cookies, Peanut Butter Cookie Cups, and tons of Bark.

Sometimes you just have to keep something out for yourself. Just the really good stuff.

You can make these with just one bag of the caramel bits, but, really, why would you want to?

Magic Turtle Bars-Chocolate, Caramel and Pecans, come together in this fabulous Magic Bar

 

Magic Turtle Bars

Magic Turtle Bars

Ingredients

  • 2 cups crushed vanilla cookies (I used imitation Vanilla wafers)
  • 1/2 cup butter melted (1 stick)
  • 2 bags semi sweet chocolate chips
  • 1-2 bags Kraft Caramel Bits
  • 2 cups coarsely chopped pecans
  • 1 cans sweetened condensed milk

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Lightly spray or grease a 9 x 13 pan.
  3. Combine crushed cookies and butter till combined and cookie crumbs are moist. Spread evenly in bottom of pan, pressing down to form a crust.
  4. Now start layering the rest of the ingredients. 1 bag chocolate chips, caramel bits, pecans (save out about 1/4 cup for the top), second bag of chocolate chips, remaining pecans.
  5. Drizzle sweetened condensed milk over the entire pan, make sure to cover all the nooks and crannies.
  6. Bake for 25-30 minutes, just until milk begins to turn golden. Let cool completely before cutting.
  7. Store in airtight container. If you choose to refrigerate these bars, bring them back to room temperature before eating.

Notes

recipe source ChocolateChocolateandmore.com

Magic Turtle Bars-Chocolate, Caramel and Pecans, come together in this fabulous Magic Bar

Looking for more Turtle inspiration?
 
Turtle Bark
 
Try my Turtle Bark
 
Rolo-Pretzel-Turtles-from-ChocolateChocolateandmore-92a
 
 
Rolo Pretzel Turtles  or
 
Chocolate Chip Turtle Cookies from Crazy for Crust
Turtle Cheesecake Fudge from Inside Brucrew
Chocolate Turtle Cookies from Pixelated Crumb
Turtle Popcorn from Cravings of a Lunatic

Filed Under: Bars, Cookies, Sweet Tagged With: bars, caramel, chocolate, cookie, crust, kid friendly, layer, magic bars, Pecan, Pecans, sweetened condensed milk

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. www.you-made-that.com says

    December 29, 2012 at 3:38 am

    Sounds like a busy holiday for you but a good one. Your bars look delicious, great for a simple but rich sweet treat for the new year.

  2. Laura (Tutti Dolci) says

    December 29, 2012 at 5:31 am

    These bars look incredible, Joan!

  3. Kim Bee says

    December 29, 2012 at 5:51 am

    I love you more than…more than…more than…dare I say it…turtles. Thanks for the new turtle recipe I’ll be making and hogging all to myself when I make it. And thanks for sharing my link. I’ll be doing the same link love thingy in the new year. It’s a great way to spread the love. Hope you had an awesome holiday. I’ll touch base once my son leaves for home. Right now I’m in “my family is all under one roof” mode. Barely working, only when I absolutely have to. xx

  4. Hayley @ The Domestic Rebel says

    December 29, 2012 at 5:14 am

    Oh wow, Joan–these bars are incredible! SO many delicious layers of sticky, gooey goodness. You’re inspiring me for another magic bar idea… ๐Ÿ™‚

  5. Kalamity Kelli says

    December 29, 2012 at 11:14 am

    These look great! I have all the items needed and it’s too darn cold to get out today so these will be a nice treat for the hubs! Thanks!

  6. Patty says

    December 29, 2012 at 3:56 pm

    Hi Joan! I would try keep a stash of these bars just for myself but if my husband found them that would be the end of my stash for sure!!! Sounds like you had a wonderful holiday with your family but I know it’s a lot of work for us moms and grand moms around the holidays;-) I hope you have some nice R & R over the weekend and have a very Happy New Years, look forward to your recipes in 2013;-)

  7. Randi~Dukes and Duchesses says

    December 29, 2012 at 5:12 pm

    Yum … I’ll definitely be making those!

  8. Jen @JuanitasCocina says

    December 29, 2012 at 6:23 pm

    So, I’ve now visited this post 3 times. That says something. I’m making these. Yes, right now.

  9. Lisa {Authentic Suburban Gourmet } says

    December 29, 2012 at 8:19 pm

    Sounds like the holidays are treating you well! These bars are magical – magically delicious! Need to make these soon!!!

  10. Erin @ Dinners, Dishes, and Desserts says

    December 29, 2012 at 8:25 pm

    Yum!! These definitely are magic! Glad you had a great holiday!

  11. Magic of Spice says

    December 29, 2012 at 11:15 pm

    Great name for these, they really look sinfully delicious!

  12. Melissa Bo says

    December 30, 2012 at 12:24 am

    I love these! =) Your recipe sounds so easy! thanks!

  13. Anita at Hungry Couple says

    December 30, 2012 at 9:09 pm

    I hide treats in the vegetable crisper. I’m the only one who ever goes in there! ๐Ÿ™‚ Have a very happy new year, Joan!

  14. Katrina Bahl says

    January 1, 2013 at 3:25 pm

    Oh I totally hide treats from my family too ๐Ÿ˜‰

  15. Anita Stafford says

    January 4, 2013 at 6:13 pm

    These have me drooling, so yummy looking!

  16. Tiffany/MyCrowdedKitchen says

    January 4, 2013 at 9:07 pm

    Joan, you always make me drool. These look fab. Happy New Year!

  17. Jill @ KitchenFunWithMy3Sons.com says

    January 5, 2013 at 6:12 pm

    Wow!!! We would love for you to share this at our Kitchen Fun and Crafty Link party! https://kitchenfunwithmy3sons.blogspot.com/2013/01/kitchen-fun-and-crafty-friday-link-party.html

  18. Vicky @ Mess For Less says

    January 6, 2013 at 2:15 am

    Wow, these look sinfully good. Can’t wait to try them. Visiting from a Pinteresting link party and off to pin this.

  19. Kady says

    January 6, 2013 at 3:30 pm

    These look super yummy! Pinning now!! https://pinkgerberdaisies-kady.blogspot.com/

  20. Cathy Trochelman says

    January 7, 2013 at 3:47 am

    These look DELICIOUS!! I looove turtle sundaes, but not in winter! These will be my new go-to ๐Ÿ™‚ Thanks for sharing!
    Cathy
    https://www.lemontreedwelling.com/

  21. The Better Baker says

    January 8, 2013 at 7:02 pm

    This is a to.die.for Killer recipe! I would soooooo love it.

  22. {Steph} says

    January 11, 2013 at 8:34 pm

    Oooo, these look so delish!!

  23. Anonymous says

    February 2, 2013 at 1:38 am

    I have these in the oven now for my Dads birthday present. I may have to have a taste! dabsmom02@yahoo com

  24. aimee @ like mother like daughter says

    May 30, 2013 at 6:47 pm

    oh my goodness, I love magic bars and I love turtles, these look A-MAZING. I saw your post on crazy for crusts round up, and I can’t wait to try these!

  25. pattie kuipers says

    July 23, 2013 at 10:23 am

    Can not wait to try these! One quick question….what size can of milk do I need?
    Thanks,
    Pattie~

    • Joan Hayes says

      July 23, 2013 at 10:28 am

      Hi Pattie, the sweetened condensed milk is 14 ounces.

  26. aimee @ like mother like daughter says

    July 23, 2013 at 11:22 am

    Mmm I love magic bars – but with caramel to make them like turtles? yum!!

  27. Jan Martin says

    September 15, 2013 at 8:03 pm

    Oh, these Magic Turtle Bars look SO yummy. I found your recipe on Pinterest, and I have a question. I have used sweetened condensed milk before and find that it is really hard to drizzle or pour evenly. Can it be heated in the microwave so that it is thinner and easier to drizzle? I have wondered but have been afraid to try that. What do you think? Thanks and I’m so glad I found you!
    ~ Jan

    • Joan Hayes says

      September 16, 2013 at 11:19 am

      I’d be careful heating it, I know you can cook sweetened condensed milk and turn it into dulce de leche. I use a bottle opener and poke a hole in the top of the can to drizzle, it does take a few minutes. If the kids are around I let them do it, while I get a head start on clean up.

      • Jeanna says

        June 4, 2014 at 2:30 pm

        I run my can of milk under HOT water for a few minutes or put it in a bowl of hot water and then poke it with a hole. It drizzles out perfectly and works like a charm ๐Ÿ™‚
        I have these in the oven now. I bought caramels instead of the bits. I chopped them up and hope that it works fine.

  28. Dixie Storm says

    October 7, 2013 at 4:14 pm

    I was wondering which size bag of chocolate chips you use and are the Kraft Caramel bits located where the chocolate chips are as I have never used these. Also, thanks for the great tip on how to drizzle the condensed milk as it is rather thick.

    • Joan Hayes says

      October 7, 2013 at 10:08 pm

      Hi Dixie, I use the 11 ounce bag of chips, it might be 12 ounces, but you can never have too much chocolate can you? You should find the caramel bits near the chocolate chips in your baking isle.

      • Dixie Storm says

        October 10, 2013 at 12:13 am

        Thanks for replying. I shall be trying these.

  29. Dixie Storm says

    October 10, 2013 at 12:14 am

    Thanks for replying. I shall be trying these great sounding bars.

  30. Randa Johnson says

    October 15, 2013 at 12:40 am

    Can these be made with crushed pretzels instead of vanilla wafers, for a sweet and salty combination?

    • Joan Hayes says

      October 15, 2013 at 10:01 pm

      Oh yes Randa, pretzels sound wonderful!

    • Kim Koonce says

      October 19, 2013 at 5:13 pm

      The pretzels sound even better.

  31. Debbie says

    October 17, 2013 at 10:02 pm

    We don;t have the kraft caramel bits in Canada, could I cut up some carmels??? the bars look awesome!

    • Joan Hayes says

      October 17, 2013 at 11:05 pm

      Absolutely, The bits are convenient, no unwrapping involved but are still the same product!

  32. Rachel @the dessert chronicles says

    November 4, 2013 at 6:46 pm

    mmmm, I have been craving magic bars and this looks like an awesome recipe! May have to go make some right now ๐Ÿ™‚

  33. Darlene says

    November 8, 2013 at 2:43 pm

    I just made these but after cooking for the given amount of time and then cooling them I don’t think they cooked through. I’m going to try cooking for another 10 minutes but think I’ve ruined them. Ugh !!!

    • Joan Hayes says

      November 8, 2013 at 7:41 pm

      Darlene, I’m so sorry, When you take them out of the oven, the sweetened condensed milk will still be gooey in the center but should firm up once cooled.

  34. Mary says

    November 19, 2013 at 7:15 am

    I wonder if these would work with the boiled sweetened condensed milk caramel. It would be a LOT easier than unwrapping! They sound wonderful!

  35. sharon whyte says

    November 23, 2013 at 4:21 pm

    how many ouences of carmel bits do u use? if i can’t find need 2 know how much carmels in weight 2 use. thanks.

    • Joan Hayes says

      November 24, 2013 at 10:28 am

      Each bag of caramel bits weighs 11 ounces so depending on how caramelly you want your bars, adjust accordingly. There is no too much or too little with this recipe, just what tastes good to you in the end!

  36. lorre says

    November 23, 2013 at 6:58 pm

    what are carmel bites and where would I find them

    • Joan Hayes says

      November 24, 2013 at 10:26 am

      Caramel bits are made by Kraft and you can usually find them near the chocolate chips in the baking section of your grocery store. They are just small unwrapped bits of caramel. If you can’t find them, you can use regular caramels and use kitchen shears to cut them into smaller pieces.
      https://www.kraftbrands.com/caramels/products/default.aspx

  37. Deedra says

    November 24, 2013 at 6:18 am

    Could I substitute a different nut for the pecans? Nuts like pecans and walnuts leave an oily taste/film in my mouth that I can’t stand, so I don’t eat them (and it doesn’t matter if they are toasted or not).

    • Joan Hayes says

      November 24, 2013 at 10:20 am

      Of course you can! Recipes are just a guide for individual tastes, use what you like and enjoy!

  38. Lisa says

    November 24, 2013 at 2:37 pm

    I saw these the other day!! I love all your great recipes!! Thanks for sharing!! Making these right now. I will let you know how they turn out

  39. Vannessa says

    December 3, 2013 at 5:15 pm

    Can you use peanuts instead of pecans in this recipe? We’re not big on pecans around here.

  40. Diane says

    December 23, 2013 at 7:31 pm

    Just made these (also made Cream Cheese Squares) and cannot wait to try them! I also added a half of a 12-oz bag of white chocolate chips…. increased the pecans a bit since we love pecans…. am already salivating! Can’t wait to share them with family on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day!! Will come back and let you know how they turned out ๐Ÿ™‚

  41. Liz says

    January 27, 2014 at 4:13 pm

    I made these a couple of weeks ago and they were gorgeous. I live in England (where you can’t buy caramel bits), and I had some leftover homemade caramel on hand which had pretty much solidified to a soft fudge, so I chopped that up and it worked wonderfully, thanks for sharing the recipe!

    https://thesugarlump.blogspot.co.uk/2014/01/magic-turtle-bars.html

  42. Kelly says

    March 27, 2014 at 5:58 pm

    Does the recipe call for 1 or 2 cans of sweetened condensed milk? In the recipe, it says 1 cans and I was wondering if it was supposed to say 2 cans. Thanks!

    • Joan Hayes says

      March 27, 2014 at 9:54 pm

      It’s just one can.

  43. Capturing Joy with Kristen Duke says

    May 22, 2014 at 10:06 am

    Oh my goodness, this look amazing!!! I love anything “turtle.” Putting this on my must-make-soon list!!

  44. Erin says

    June 15, 2014 at 6:40 am

    I just tried these last night and they are amazing! Thanks so much for the recipe! In Australia we don’t have the Kraft Caramel Bits so I “Australianised” them with some other caramels and they were super delicious. I have shared them on my blog (with full credit back of course!)
    I’ve been following your blog for awhile but this is the first time I’ve made a recipe – will definitely be back to make a lot more now!!

  45. Natasha says

    September 13, 2014 at 2:08 pm

    Wow! Thank you so much for sharing this! I made these as a treat for my moms birthday (a turtle lover!) and she couldn’t get enough of them!!!
    I used caramel squares that I cut into quarters, and it worked perfectly. So rich and decadent, I’ve already been asked to make them again!

    • Joan Hayes says

      September 23, 2014 at 8:53 am

      So glad you and your mom enjoyed them.

  46. capturing joy with kristen duke says

    October 9, 2014 at 5:33 pm

    Just made these and popped them in the oven, can’t wait to eat it!!

Trackbacks

  1. 31 Seven Layer Magic Bar Recipes - Crazy for Crust says:
    May 30, 2013 at 6:01 pm

    […] Magic Turtle Bars by Chocolate, Chocolate, and More […]

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We are a family that loves baking, good food, good times spent with family and friends, and exploring new places. Many of our most cherished family times have been cooking together in the kitchen at holidays or family gatherings. We invite you into our kitchens to share our love of all things chocolate and more (other desserts and even some healthy options). Read More

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