Fudge Nut Bars (Fudge Jumble Bars?)

Goin' to a potluck picnic today, and these are going with me!

If you like cookies and fudge, you will like this bar recipe.  It's a little "putzy" to make, but it's a favorite!  (And, ...it makes a WHOLE LOT of bars!!!)

Originally, and many years ago,  I clipped this recipe from the Agri-View farm paper.  It was submitted by a mother who was planning to sell a "family cookbook" in memory of her daughter who was killed while driving "back to college".  It was such a sad story, but I loved how the mother said they'd had so many special times while cooking and baking together.



INGREDIENTS for the bottom 'cookie dough' layer--

• 1 cup butter (room temperature)
• 2 cups light brown sugar, firmly packed
• 2 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 3 cups quick-cooking rolled oats (I use old-fashioned oats)
• 2 and 1/2 cups sifted flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt

DIRECTIONS for making the bottom 'cookie dough' layer:

Cream together the cup of butter and brown sugar.  Mix in eggs (one at a time) and the 2 teaspoons vanilla.  Sift together four, baking soda and salt; stir in rolled oats.  Now add the sifted mixture of flour, baking soda and salt.  Stir only long enough to incorporate.  SET  THIS ASIDE while you prepare the 'fudge filling' below.
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INGREDIENTS for fudge filling:

• 1 of 12 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 can sweetened condensed milk (not evaporated milk)
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup chopped nuts 

DIRECTIONS for making the fudge filling:

In a saucepan over boiling water (or in microwavable bowl), mix together chocolate chips, sweetened condensed milk, butter and salt.  Stir until chocolate chips are melted and the mixture is smooth. Remove from heat; stir in the vanilla and chopped nuts* (see my note at the bottom).  IF you do use the microwave for this, please check and stir after each ONE-minute of time.

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Now!!! ...The instructions for putting it all together:

Spread about 2/3 of the 'cookie dough' batter in bottom of a generously greased or sprayed 15.5 x 10.5-inch jelly roll pan. (It won't seem like there's enough dough to cover the pan, but eventually it's accomplished.  In fact, I have better luck if I begin by dropping very little globs of this dough in all different areas of the greased pan before starting to spread it out with my "wetted" fingers.)

Carefully cover that layer with the fudge filling.  Now, using the remaining 1/3 of the 'cookie dough', take tiny pieces (1/2" size?) of it and drop it on the fudge layer as evenly as you can.  Once I put the little dabs of reserved "cookie dough" mixture on top, I use two little "pointy" kinds of things and gently spread the "dabs" out... just a little... it will end up looking a lot like this, and have SOME "bare spots" showing the fudge layer...

Bake in 350-degree oven for about 25-30 minutes, or until the top 'droppings' are lightly browned.  In my oven, it took just 25 minutes and came out looking like this...

Cool completely before cutting.  

Makes almost 6 dozen bars.

Below:   I put a sheet of parchment paper between each layer of bars.  Cover 'em up...these are all ready to go to today's potluck picnic!

* I like to keep the nuts out when I'm making the fudge layer and then gently press them evenly into the fudge layer once that layer is spread onto the "cookie dough" layer.  AFTER the nuts are "in place", I add the dabs of dough over all.)