These Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars are made of an easy vegan chocolate chip cookie bar recipe with a layer of gooey caramel sauce inside. This vegan cookie bar recipe is so delicious, everyone will love it!
Vegan Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
Are you a fan of cookies? Honestly, I love enjoying cookies as a simple snack with a cup of coffee or tea in the afternoon. Anyway, I prefer these types of soft cookies, which are more cake-like and remind me of blondies. Especially when they contain chocolate chips and also have a delicious caramel filling in the center, it makes an incredible texture and flavor!
So I came up with the idea of sharing one of my all time favorite and super easy vegan cookie bar recipes which I have made a couple of times already. Anyway, not only are they so easy to put together – no need to shape the cookies because you can easily bake the whole cookie dough in one pan – but they’re also incredibly delicious and perfect to freeze for the future to enjoy anytime!

Best Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
And if you were to ask me, “what do these Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars taste like?!”… Well, honestly, I find they taste like a combination of chocolate chip blondies and Twix bars! They are soft, sticky, chocolatey, gooey with crispy edges and thick simple salted caramel filling. What do you think about that? If that sounds good to you, then let’s start making this amazing easy vegan cookie bar recipe!

Easy Vegan Cookie Bars Recipe
You don’t need eggs, or any dairy ingredients to make these vegan cookie bars. I used flax eggs instead of regular eggs but you can also try this recipe using a mashed banana or apple sauce instead. I have figured out that the texture is best when using vegan butter, however, coconut oil will create a similar crumbly but still soft texture too. To sweeten I used brown sugar but you can use whatever sugar you like.

How to make Chocolate Chip Cookie dough
As I mentioned before, they are very easy to make! Just mix together the ingredients for the cookie dough as instructed in the recipe box below. Then chill for a few minutes to firm up, so it gets easier to press into the baking pan. In the meantime, prepare the easy salted caramel layer.
How to make homemade Caramel Sauce
Since vegan soft caramels are available here in Germany, I prefer keeping the caramel layer super simple and just melt them in condensed coconut milk to create a smooth caramel sauce. But if you want to make your own homemade caramel sauce, I have an easy recipe for you too.
Start to heat 1 cup (200g) sugar in a pot over medium heat, until completely melted. As soon as it starts to caramelize, stir to avoid burning, until golden-brown. Then add 6 tablespoons (90g) vegan butter. Please be careful because the caramel will bubble rapidly. Stir until it is completely melted, about 2 minutes. Slowly add in 1/2 cup of coconut cream while stirring and allow to cook for a minute. It will rise in the pot as it boils so please make sure the pot you use is deep enough. Finally, remove from the heat and stir in 1 teaspoon of salt.

Can I make the Caramel Sauce ahead?
Yes, you can make this caramel in advance. Just make sure it is covered tightly so you can store it for up to 1 month in the fridge. Since Caramel thickens as it cools, you will need to heat the caramel up in the microwave or on the stove for a few seconds before using in this recipe. You can also freeze the salted caramel in an airtight container for up to 3 months. To thaw, place in the refrigerator or at room temperature overnight.

How to make Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
To assemble, press about 2/3 of the cookie dough into the bottom of your prepared baking pan. Pour over the salted caramel and finally, drop the remaining cookie dough over the caramel filling in small clumps. Bake the bars until the center is just set. Allow to cool slightly. Slice and enjoy!




Add-Ins and Toppings for Cookie Bars
You can add any additional toppings you want to the cookie dough, such as nuts, dried fruits, any kind of sprinkles or other types of chocolate. You could also swap a part of the vegan butter for cashew butter, peanut butter, almond butter or any other nut butter! Just take note that this may affect the taste and texture but feel free to mix and match however you like depending on your taste!

Can I make this Cookie Bars Recipe without Caramel?
I love salted caramel and that’s why I made a really thick caramel layer. Anyway, this layer is not only tasty but it makes the vegan cookie bars have a softer and gooey texture. However, if you love crunchy cookies more than caramel then you can skip the caramel layer, or add just half the recipe and save the rest for something else, such as topping for ice cream, pancakes, waffles, crêpes, or other desserts.

I hope you’ll like these Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars. They’re
- Vegan
- Egg-free
- Dairy-free
- Easy to make
- Gooey
- Chocolatey
- Soft with crispy edges
- Loaded with chocolate chips
- Filled with Salted Caramel layer
- Taste almost like Blondies
- Incredibly Delicious!
Can you freeze these?
Yes, you can! These vegan cookie bars freeze very well and they taste just as delicious when thawed. Just make sure to store them properly to avoid freezer burn. I usually wrap individual pieces in foil tightly, then put into a freezer ziplock bag. To serve, simply let them thaw unwrapped and loosely covered overnight.

Looking for more sweet, tasty and chocolatey vegan recipes? Then you may also like my
- Best Vegan Brownies
- Best Chocolate Banana Bread
- Chocolate Peanut Butter Snickers Cake
- Chocolate Raspberry Layer Cake
- Best Vegan Chocolate Cake
- Chocolate Brownie Swirl Cheesecake
- 5-Minute Chocolate Mugcake
- Easy Chocolate Crêpes
- Fluffy Chocolate Pancakes
- Or want to try one of my favorite Vegan Cheesecake Recipes?

Anyway, if you try this Vegan Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars Recipe, please leave me a comment below letting me know how you like it! And if you take a picture of your yummy Cookies and share it on Instagram, please make sure to tag me @biancazapatka and use the hashtag #biancazapatka , so I won’t miss your post! 😊

Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
Author:You do not have a fitting cake pan at hand right now? Try my Cake Pan Conversion Calculator!
Ingredients
Cookie Bars
- 2 flax-eggs (2 tbsp ground flaxseed + 6 tbsp hot water) or use regular eggs, if non-vegan
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 312g, or sub gluten-free flour*
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda or sub more 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 cup vegan butter 225g, softened, or sub 3/4 cup coconut oil + 1/4 cup apple sauce
- 1 1/4 cup brown sugar 250g, or another sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup vegan chocolate chips 180g
Caramel Layer
- 10 oz vegan soft caramels 280g, *read recipe notes for options
- 1 cup sweetened condensed coconut milk 240ml, or 1/2 cup full-fat coconut milk + 1/2 cup sugar *read recipe notes
- 1 tsp sea salt optional
Instructions
Cookie Bars
- Prepare the flax-eggs: Mix the ground flax seeds into hot water and set aside for about 5 minutes until jelly.
- Preheat the oven to 355°F (175°C). Grease an 11x7-inch baking pan (or similar size) with a bit of vegan butter and then line with additional baking paper. (The previous greasing helps the baking paper stick to the pan).
- Sift the flour, baking soda and salt into a large mixing bowl. Give it a good whisk, then set aside.
- Add the softened vegan butter and sugar into a mixing bowl and beat with an electric hand mixer until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the flax-eggs and vanilla and mix to combine.
- Reduce the speed to low and add the flour mixture. Mix just until combined, then fold in the chocolate chips. Form the cookie dough into a disc, wrap in foil and refrigerate for 15 minutes.
- Then press 2/3 of the dough into the bottom of your prepared baking dish (*as pictured in the step-by-step pics in my blogpost).
Caramel Layer
- Heat up the non-dairy cream and soft caramels in a pot and stir until the caramel is melted and you have a smooth caramel cream mixture.
- Pour the caramel cream onto the cookie base. Drop the remaining cookie dough over the caramel filling in small clumps and sprinkle over more chocolate chips, if you like. Bake for about 25-30 minutes, until the top is set.
- Let cool completely, and preferably chill overnight. Then lift them out of the pan by the overhanging parchment paper and cut into bars.
- Enjoy! 😊
Notes
- To make these chocolate chip cookie bars gluten-free, I recommend using a gluten-free flour blend 1:1.
- If you’re not vegan, you could use regular cream or sweetened condensed milk, soft caramels, and chocolate chips.
- You can store the cookies bars in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days, or freeze them for a longer storage.
- If you can’t find vegan caramels, you can either omit the caramel layer and bake the cookie bars without the filling. Alternatively, just drizzle some melted creamy peanut butter over, or make your own caramel sauce (read my blogpost above for the homemade caramel sauce recipe).
- Instead of store-bought sweetened coconut condensed milk, you can make your own. Simply combine 1/2 cup coconut milk + 1/2 cup sugar + 1 tbsp vegan butter in a pot, and cook for about 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
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These look incredible! Any thoughts on subbing in soy milk when making the caramel sauce? Do you think it would function about the same (minus the rich coconut flavor obviously)?
You can sub soy cream but not milk.
The recipe is really great! The amounts were perfect and it turned out amazing for my husband’s birthday in these crazy COVID-19 days
So glad you enjoyed these bars! Happy belated birthday to your hubby! 🙂
Tolles Rezept! 😍 Ich hab aus dem Cookie Teig Kekse gemacht und die sind super geworden! Hat auch meiner Familie, die Veganismus kritisch entgegensteht, sehr gut geschmeckt😉. Kann dieses Rezept (und alle anderen Rezepte von Bianca) nur weiter empfehlen!
Liebe Marie, das ist echt super, dass dieses Rezept auch für Kekse prima geeignet ist! Ich danke dir vielmals für dein klasse Feedback! 🙂
Do you have a good recipe for apple sauce?
Hi Denise, to make apple sauce I just peel, core and chop apples. Then I cook them in a little bit of water until they’re very soft. Next, I blend the cooked apples in a blender and add sugar and a drizzle of lemon juice to taste. The cooking time depends on how small you chop the apples. Smaller apple pieces are done sooner than larger pieces 🙂
This looks absolutely delicious, but I was wondering.. can I make the caramel without the coconut cream?
If you want to make the caramel with soft caramels, you could also melt them with a little coconut milk. I suggest to bring about 1/4 cup of coconut milk to a boil, then add the caramels and stir until melted. If it’s too firm, you can add a little more milk.
Chocolate chip bars are the best! Love the addition of caramel! Would love to try these. 😀
Thank you so much, Ela 🙂
These were so easy to make and soooo rich and delicous!! I made the caramel sauce myself like she explains in the post, it was so easy! Definitely making these again!!
So glad to hear that! Thank you 🙂
The color is so striking GORGEOUS! I am pinning this. Got to try over the weekend.
Thank you so much <3
These are seriously the most heavenly dessert bars ever! I cannot even believe my eyes. They are just so mouthwatering and gorgeous! I am checking to see if I have all the ingredients because I really want to make them and share them with my parents who are visiting in town this weekend (or just eat them all by myself hehe). And the photos are so stunning! !
Thank you so much, Nisha! Hope you’ll like them <3