Speculoos Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Dough Granola Bars

In my opinion the best granola bars are the soft chewy ones, and after the no-bake peanut butter granola bars I made I wasn’t sure a granola bar could get any better. But after seeing Lindsay’s recipe for oatmeal cookie dough granola bar in her Cookie Dough Lover’s Cookbook, I decided that the granola bar base from the peanut butter bars were destined to be combined with cookie dough. And not just any cookie dough, but an oatmeal raisin cookie dough with Speculoos cookie butter mixed in. I even went so far as to mix the cookie butter into the granola bar base itself. They may not be the healthiest granola bars, but they taste just like an oatmeal raisin cookie but are better for you than a cookie! Which means they are highly addicting.

One year ago: Flavor-Injected Glazed Ham

SPECULOOS OATMEAL RAISIN COOKIE DOUGH GRANOLA BARS

Makes 12 bars

Ingredients:

COOKIE DOUGH

2 Tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature

2 Tbsp Speculoos (or Biscoff) cookie butter

2 Tbsp sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 Tbsp milk

1/4 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 cup + 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour

1/4 cup + 2 Tbsp quick oats

1/8 tsp salt

1/8 tsp cinnamon

1/2 cup raisins

1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

BAR BASE

1/4 cup unsalted butter

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup Speculoos (or Biscoff) cookie butter

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 cups quick oats

1/2 cup crispy rice cereal

Directions:

1. Line an 8 x 8 inch baking pan with parchment paper, leaving some overhanging over two opposite edges. Set aside.
2. Make the cookie dough: In a medium bowl, beat butter, Speculoos cookie butter, and sugars with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Mix in milk and vanilla. Stir in flour, oats, salt, and cinnamon on low speed until incorporated. Fold in raisin and walnuts.
3. Make the bar base: In a large sauce pan, add butter, brown sugar, honey, and Speculoos cookie butter. Heat over meadium-low, stirring occasionally until the mixture starts to bubble. Once bubbling, cook for 2 minutes while stirring. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract.
4. Stir in the oats and crispy cereal until well coated. Pour half into the prepared pan. Press the mixture evenly into the pan. Sprinkle the cookie dough over the top followed by the remaining oat mixture and gently press with your hands until evenly spread and flat.
5. Place the bars in the refrigerator and let cool for at least 30 minutes before cutting. Cut into bars and serve.

Source: Cookie dough adapted from The Cookie Dough Lover’s Cookbook, by Lindsay Landis. Granola bars adapted from Two Peas and Their Pods.