Andi is my younger sister. Even though she is 5 years younger than me, Kelly & Andrew always thought she was older than me when they were growing up. This has been a constant source of amusement for me!

Andi has an amazing auditory memory. She can recite all the commercial jingles and TV & movie dialogue she has ever heard! Her impressions keep everyone in stitches when we are all together.

Along with parents & childhood, both my sisters & I share of love of chocolate. For her birthday blog, Andi requested a dessert with chocolate and nuts and I immediately thought of my Hershey’s cookbooks and the wonderful chocolate desserts they contain.

Eric & I grew up in Pennsylvania, just 90 minutes from Hershey Park, the amusement park owned and run by the Hershey Chocolate Corporation. I made at least one trip there each summer as a teenager and young adult. Besides loving all the roller coasters, I loved the tour through the simulated chocolate factory to see how all those great Hershey’s candies were made. Once, I even bought a chocolate tree. The cacao tree grows pods from which chocolate is made. Sadly, my plant didn’t grow into a tree and produce any pods for making chocolate. Instead, I bought Hershey’s cookbooks filled with wonderful chocolate desserts to make. This is a favorite from one of the 3 Hershey’s cookbooks I own.

Chocolate Filled Oatmeal Bars (adapted from Hershey’s Make It Chocolate Cookbook)

Ingredients:

Chocolate Filling

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
• 2/3 cup cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
• 1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Oatmeal Base

• 1 cup butter or margarine
• 2 cups light brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 cups quick-cooking rolled oats
• 2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1-1/2 cups pecans or walnuts, divided

Directions:

Make the chocolate filling. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over low heat. Stir in the cocoa and sugar. Add the sweetened condensed milk. Cook, stirring constantly, until the filling is smooth and thick. Remove it from the heat and stir in the vanilla. Set it aside and make the oatmeal base.

Beat the butter and the brown sugar together in the large bowl of an electric mixer until well blended. Add the eggs and vanilla, beating until fluffy.

Add in the salt and the baking soda. Add the flour and oatmeal in, a little at a time, combining it thoroughly. Stir in 1 cup of the nuts. The dough will be very thick. Set aside 2 cups of the dough.

Press the remaining dough evenly into the bottom of a greased 9 x 13 pan. Spread the chocolate filling evenly over the dough.

Crumble the reserved dough evenly over the filling. Sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup of nuts over the top.

Bake at 350° for 25 minutes or until the top is golden brown.

Cool the bars completely in the pan on a wire rack then cut them into pieces. Makes about 24 bars.

Happy Birthday, Andi!  ~Linda

Chocolate Filled Oatmeal Bars (adapted from Hershey’s Make It Chocolate Cookbook)

Ingredients:

Chocolate Filling

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
• 2/3 cup cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
• 1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Oatmeal Base

• 1 cup butter or margarine
• 2 cups light brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 cups quick-cooking rolled oats
• 2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1-1/2 cups pecans or walnuts, divided

Directions:

Make the chocolate filling. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over low heat. Stir in the cocoa and sugar. Add the sweetened condensed milk. Cook, stirring constantly, until the filling is smooth and thick. Remove it from the heat and stir in the vanilla. Set it aside and make the oatmeal base.

Beat the butter and the brown sugar together in the large bowl of an electric mixer until well blended. Add the eggs and vanilla, beating until fluffy.

Add in the salt and the baking soda. Add the flour and oatmeal in, a little at a time, combining it thoroughly. Stir in 1 cup of the nuts. The dough will be very thick. Set aside 2 cups of the dough.

Press the remaining dough evenly into the bottom of a greased 9 x 13 pan. Spread the chocolate filling evenly over the dough.

Crumble the reserved dough evenly over the filling. Sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup of nuts over the top.

Bake at 350° for 25 minutes or until the top is golden brown.

Cool the bars completely in the pan on a wire rack then cut them into pieces. Makes about 24 bars.