Chocolate Chip Fudge Bars

I’ve started back to work full time this week, and while I work some during the summer, it’s a bit of a shock to the system getting back into the swing of things. I almost posted a “Flashback Friday” as I just wasn’t sure that I had the energy to bake this week. I hadn’t planned ahead, and I was having trouble deciding what to bake. I kept looking and recipes and I couldn’t make a choice. I figured that I would need to stop at the store on the way home from work, but that would require that I know what I was going to bake.

I had pinned these bars, and I showed them to my husband and he was all for me making them. While they do need to refrigerate before cutting into bars, they don’t take long otherwise. We ate an early dinner out and then stopped to get the needed ingredients, which included 2 packages (24 ounces) of chocolate chips. How could I be out of chocolate chips? Oh yeah, we haven’t been to Costco, where I buy the giant bag.

These bar cookies are a classic recipe, and I imagine that they originally came from the manufacturer of sweetened condensed milk. I’ve made several recipes from that company and they are usually good, but very rich. Making the fudge with chocolate chips and sweetened condensed milk is very easy, and I was happy at how quickly the mixture came together. It is a little tricky to get the top layer of cookie dough to cover the fudge, so take your time with that. They are very rich, but the fudgy filling is so good and decadent!

Chocolate Chip Fudge Bars

1 cup butter, room temperature

2/3 cup sugar

2/3 cup packed brown sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

2 1/3 cups all flour

2 cups chocolate chips

14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk

2 cups chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9” x 13” pan with foil and spray the foil with nonstick cooking spray.

In a large mixer bowl, beat the butter, sugar, and brown sugar on medium until creamy. Add the eggs and vanilla and mix again on medium to combine. Add the salt, baking soda, and flour and stir on low until the dough comes together. Stir in the chocolate chips.

Press about 2/3 of the dough into the prepared pan. In a microwaveable bowl, combine the sweetened condensed milk and the chocolate chips. Microwave in 30 second increments, stirring frequently, until the mixture is smooth and glossy. Spread the fudge filling over the cookie dough base. Using greased hands, carefully flatten the remaining dough and piece it on top of the fudge filling. Try to cover the fudge as much as possible, but it doesn’t have to be perfect.

Bake for 22-25 minutes, until golden brown. Allow the bars to cool in the refrigerator for at least two hours before cutting into bars.

Recipe from Back for Seconds