
Chewy oatmeal cookie bars that are rich with deep molasses flavor are topped with marshmallow fluff buttercream for the perfect treat. These bars come together super quickly, they can be in the oven in under 10 minutes. Then a quick buttercream layer is spread over to make them out of this world good. They are just like those Little Debbie treats we all grew up on!
If these don't bring back childhood memories of sack lunches, I don't know what will! Actually, to tell you the truth I am not sure that I frequently had these in my lunch box.
I seem to think I ate school lunch most of the time. Though I do know that when I was older, my mom always had a treat basket for my younger siblings' lunches.

They seemed to bring cold lunch more often and they got to pick one item from the treat basket for their lunch box. Of course the treats were the best part of the lunch packing (and eating) experience!
These cookie bars are easy to make. You don't have to worry about them spreading, so you can start with melted butter and soft dough.

You can mix it by hand with no problem, no need to pull out the stand mixer or anything! Just spread it, bake it and load it with frosting!
There is the warm depth of molasses and just a slight cinnamon spice. It is a great compliment to the marshmallow fluff buttercream frosting.
In fact, the molasses and creamy frosting combine to make almost a caramel flavor. And the chew of the cookie is so good.
I originally shared this recipe here on the site back in 2016. I made them for a football party and they were a hit.
But most of you didn't know I existed back in 2016 and I have been dreaming of these bars for the past couple of months. So I whipped some up, shot some new pictures and a video and added a printable recipe card so you could more easily make them too.

And I really hope you do. These went with me to family dinner and everyone kept going back for a little more.
They also lead to a lot of fun conversation about our favorite packaged treats. What are your favorite convenience treats?
It would be fun to make more copycat versions of stuff. Just let me know what you'd like and we'll see what we can come up with!

These cookie bars can be stored at room temperature for a couple of days. They are at their chewy best when stored at room temperature.
For longer storage, refrigerate in an airtight container for up to a week. Or freeze them for up to three months.
If you chill them until the frosting is set, you can stack them for storage. But I would but them in a single layer to defrost them.
My guess is they won't last that long anyway. They are super tasty and hard to stay out of once you dig in!
More fun cookie bar recipes
If you are a fan of soft and delicious cookie bars, you may want to check out my recipe for soft sugar cookie bars. I topped mine with a chocolate frosting and plenty of sprinkles for a fun treat!
Or for a fun fall flavored treat, make some pumpkin spice cookie bars. They are another fabulous option to go with the marshmallow fluff buttercream!
Blondies are a quick and easy way to get sweets to the masses. The recipe for chewy caramel and candy blondies are a fabulous large batch treat for parties.
Watch me make them on YouTube:

Yield: 24 Servings

Oatmeal Cream Pie Bars
Chewy oatmeal cookie bars that are rich with deep molasses flavor are topped with marshmallow fluff buttercream for the perfect treat. These bars come together super quickly, they can be in the oven in under 10 minutes. Then a quick buttercream layer is spread over to make them out of this world good. They are just like those Little Debbie treats we all grew up on!
Prep time: 10 MCook time: 30 MTotal time: 40 M
Ingredients:
- 1 cup butter, melted
- 2 cups brown sugar
- 4 Tablespoons molasses
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups instant oats
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 recipe marshmallow fluff buttercream
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 350 F and grease a 10x15" bar pan.
- Stir together butter, brown sugar, molasses and vanilla. Add eggs and mix well.
- In another bowl, stir together dry ingredients.
- Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients, stirring until just combined.
- Spread in prepared pan and bake for 25-30 minutes or until set.
- Allow to cool and spread with frosting.
- Cut into squares and serve.
Calories
204.54
204.54
Fat (grams)
8.89
8.89
Sat. Fat (grams)
5.26
5.26
Carbs (grams)
29.36
29.36
Fiber (grams)
0.95
0.95
Net carbs
28.41
28.41
Sugar (grams)
18.51
18.51
Protein (grams)
2.34
2.34
Sodium (milligrams)
137.60
137.60
Cholesterol (grams)
36.62
36.62
Copyright: Cooking With Carlee 2020

Yum! These look amazing.
ReplyDeleteThank you!
DeleteOoooo boy these look good!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Ali!
DeleteOh my goodness these look so scrumptious! The best part for me is that I have everything to make them on hand, so no trip to the grocery store needed!
ReplyDeleteThat does make it so much better! Having to run to the store for that one missing ingredient is the worst. I hope you love them!
DeleteI have all the ingredients - yay so I'll be able to make this recipe. Thanks for sharing with us at #Overthemoon Carlee great to have you linking up as always.
ReplyDeleteHooray! I hope you love them! Thanks so much for hosting.
DeleteThese sound awesome! Thanks for sharing at Inspiration Thursday!
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed them. Luckily I had a group to share them with or I might have eaten the whole pan!
DeleteI've never had this kind of bar! I need to try this asap!
ReplyDeleteThe molasses really makes it taste like the oatmeal creme pies! I hope you love it!
DeleteYum yum and yum. If I had known these existed back in the day I would have insisted I get one for lunch. As it was, I packed salami and cheese sandwiches with yellow mustard. Good, but not quite the same ;-) Thanks for linking up at #SaucySaturdays!
ReplyDeleteThey are so good! Though a salami and cheese sandwich doesn't sound half bad about now. I think I am ready for lunch!
DeleteThis sounds SO delicious! YUM! I've pinned it!
ReplyDeleteThanks for joining Cooking and Crafting with J & J!
They didn't last long, that is for sure! Thanks, Jess!
DeleteOh these look amazing. This is a childhood favorite, for sure!
ReplyDeleteThank you! They definitely bring back memories!
DeleteOh, goodness, I love these Little Debbie treats! Hmmm, maybe if I make them at home I will feel less guilty about splurging on those childhood memories?? :)
ReplyDeleteIt helps a bit when you can pronounce all of the ingredients. Plus there's oatmeal, so that takes some guilt away too ;-)
DeleteYum! Thanks for sharing at Funtastic Friday!
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by!
DeleteThis looks and sounds so delicious and healthy too.
ReplyDeleteThanks Carlee for joining and sharing your awesome recipes with us each week at Cooking & Crafting with J & J.
Better than the ones in the packages at least! Thanks for hosting!
DeleteI've never had this type of bars. Will have to give this a try. Thanks for sharing on Merry Monday.
ReplyDeleteThank you! I love the flavor of the molasses with the oatmeal.
DeleteThese look sweet! I bet the molasses and cinnamon add such a wonderful flavor too. :)
ReplyDeleteThe molasses and cinnamon really help warm up the flavor!
DeleteOatmeal and marshmallow is such a wonderful combination, these bars sound delicious! Thanks for sharing at What'd You Do This Weekend?!
ReplyDeleteThank you! We really enjoyed how the dark chewy molasses and oatmeal played against the fluffy white frosting!
DeleteThese look amazing! Thank you for liking up to this week's Tasty Tuesday linky! I have pinned your recipes to the Creative K Tasty Tuesday Pinterest board. I hope that you come back again on Tuesday.
ReplyDeleteThank you and see you Tuesday!
DeleteYum these totally take me back! Congrats on your feature at #OvertheMoon! :)
ReplyDeleteThank you!
DeleteHi Carlee,
ReplyDeleteYum! I wish my mom put these in my lunch when I was a kid! I guess I can start putting them in my boys lunches when they are old enough to go to school. Thanks for sharing these delicious bars with us at #TalentedTuesday.
Cheers,
AJ
Sometimes I get carried away thinking about all of the fun things we'll do with Jax when he is a bit older. Sometimes the thought of him getting older and going off to school makes me sad! We like to make treats for daycare though, so that is good enough for now! In fact, he and I have a cookie baking date for tonight! Thanks for hosting, AJ. Have a wonderful evening!
DeleteOh these look like a great treat. Molasses is not something that we use here but I like the sound of it!
ReplyDeleteI usually only use it in gingerbready type recipes, but it added the perfect flavor to these oatmeal bars. I need to experiment with it more!
DeleteThese look absolutely divine! My family loves oatmeal cream pies so I think they would be over the moon for these! Have a beautiful weekend!
ReplyDeleteThey are sooooooooo good! Thank you!
DeleteLooking forward to try these bars. How do I Pin?
ReplyDeleteThere are buttons at the top and bottom of the post, otherwise you can click the little v shape with the dots on it by the teal heart. I hope that helps!
Deletewhere is the marshmallow buttercream recipe? The link takes you to a blog page and no recipes. Thanks
ReplyDeleteThanks for letting me know. The link should be fixed now, sorry for the trouble.
Delete