Samoas Bars

Thursday, May 7, 2009

Hubby loves girl scout cookies. Specifically Samoas. I grew up in the Midwest, and we always called them Caramel Delights. Whatever you call them, everyone loves them. I saw this recipe come up and I knew I had to make these.

These bars do take a little bit of time because each step requires some wait time before you can move on to the next step. In the end, they’re definitely worth the effort. Hubby did comment that the cookie part tasted a bit off. I think there’s just a higher ratio of the cookie part than in the girl scout version.

Homemade Samoas Bars – from Baking Bites – makes 30 barsCookie Base:
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup butter, softened
1 large egg
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt

First, make the crust.

Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease a 9×13-inch baking pan, or line with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, cream together sugar and butter, until fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla extract. Working at a low speed, gradually beat in flour and salt until mixture is crumbly, like wet sand. The dough does not need to come together. Pour crumbly dough into prepared pan and press into an even layer.

Bake for 20-25 minutes, until base is set and edges are lightly browned. Cool completely on a wire rack before topping.

Topping:
3 cups shredded coconut (sweetened or unsweetened) – I used sweetened
12-oz good-quality chewy caramels – I used the Kraft caramel bits
1/4 tsp salt
3 tbsp milk
10 oz. dark or semisweet chocolate (chocolate chips are ok)

Preheat oven to 300. Spread coconut evenly on a parchment-lined baking sheet (preferably one with sides) and toast 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes, until coconut is golden. Cool on baking sheet, stirring occasionally. Set aside.

Unwrap the caramels and place in a large microwave-safe bowl with milk and salt. Cook on high for 3-4 minutes, stopping to stir a few times to help the caramel melt. When smooth, fold in toasted coconut with a spatula.

Put dollops of the topping all over the shortbread base. Using the spatula, spread topping into an even layer. Let topping set until cooled.

When cooled, cut into 30 bars with a large knife or a pizza cutter.

Once bars are cut, melt chocolate in a small bowl. Heat on high in the microwave in 45 second intervals, stirring thoroughly to prevent scorching. Dip the base of each bar into the chocolate and place on a clean piece of parchment or wax paper – I used a spoon to spread some melted chocolate on the bottom of each bar. I then laid them chocolate side up to set the chocolate.

Transfer all remaining chocolate into a piping bag or a ziploc bag with the corner snipped off and drizzle bars with chocolate to finish.

Let chocolate set completely before storing in an airtight container.

Makes 30 bar cookies.

Bars and Brownies, Dessert

14 comments »

15 Responses to “Triple Layer Oreo Cake”

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URBakin'MeCrazyy — February 9, 2011 at 5:10 pm

This look absolutely FABULOUS! 🙂 I love oreo’s… They could quite possibly be my favorite snack food.! I’m defientely adding this recipe to my collection of cakes to bake! Thanks for sharing.
Megan♥
http://urbakinmecrazyy.blogspot.com/
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Cupcake Kelly — February 10, 2011 at 2:14 pm

that is one of the MOST impressive cakes I’ve ever seen! You always amaze me with your creativity! very inspirational.
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Elina (Healthy and Sane) — February 10, 2011 at 7:55 pm

OMG – I want!!! 😀
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Anonymous — December 16, 2011 at 1:36 pm

hi is it ok to use regular coffee?like maxwell?how many teaspoon of maxwell should i use?thanks
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Anonymous — January 20, 2012 at 8:06 pm

This looks AMAZING! What did you use to hold the Oreos in place on the top? Is that Oreo filling?
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Claire — February 10, 2012 at 11:46 pm

Love this cake – made it for my hubby’s 30th! Just a quick question as I had a little trouble with the Oreo filling. It was a bit thin. I think the problem might be the type of cream I used as we don’t have heavy cream in Australia (at least it’s not called heavy cream) so does anyone know what type of cream I should use? Thanks heaps 🙂
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nette — December 24, 2012 at 3:38 am
This cake turned out amazing! I omitted the coffee from the frosting and it was perfect without but im sure it would have been prefect with. It was a process to make it but well worth it! Just as good if not better than a bakery cake!
- beantownbaker — December 24th, 2012 @ 5:48 pm
  
  Yes, it’s definitely a lot of work, but worth the effort! Glad you enjoyed it.
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Tastes of Lizzy T — June 1, 2013 at 5:52 am
Found you on Carole’s Chatter Food on Friday link-up. This cake looks like perfection!! I definitely need to try it soon:)
- beantownbaker — June 10th, 2013 @ 12:33 pm
  
  Thanks and welcome! You should definitely make this cake if you like Oreos at all.
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Betty Kang — July 22, 2013 at 11:17 am
OMG, I love oreo so much!!! I will try to make this cake someday! Thank you for the delicious recipe!
- beantownbaker — July 22nd, 2013 @ 1:13 pm
  
  It definitely takes a little bit of extra effort, but it’s so worth it!
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Karen — June 2, 2014 at 12:46 pm
What size pkg of Oreos? I just came home with one that only has 3 rows, ugh? It’s 14.3 oz. is that the same size? Thanks!!
- beantownbaker — September 2nd, 2014 @ 7:09 pm
  
  Did that work for you? I will have to check next time I am at the store. I just get the standard size with 3 rows.
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Kris — March 10, 2026 at 11:31 am

Just wanted you to know that after all these years I keep coming back to this recipe
!! My 17 year old requested it for his birthday, he was 4 the first time I made it for his birthday.