Turtles are easily the most underrated candy ever.
Like, for the longest time I thought turtles were those candies only grandmas liked, along with those horrid strawberry hard candies or butterscotch discs that collect lint at the bottom of their purses.
But then I realized turtles are actually awesome and have no place at the bottom of an old lady purse next to those vile strawberry things. (Seriously, who actually eats those? I know a couple of you will come forward in shame but dude. I kind of want to set them all ablaze for making strawberries taste so terrible).
If you, like me, were misinformed about the magic of turtle candies, or if you live within a gargantuan old lady purse among butterscotch discs, let me enlighten you: turtles are basically candies made of pecans, caramel, and chocolate. That’s it, yo. Sometimes with a hefty sprinkling of sea salt on top if you’re feeling fancy, or sometimes people will get all feisty on ya and throw in some almonds or walnuts or white chocolate because they like to live life on the edge. I love those edgy turtles, too. But the favorite’s a fave for a reason: who could resist buttery caramel topped with smooth, rich milk chocolate sitting atop a bed of crunchy, salty pecans? Not I.
(Well, maybe grandma can, what with the whole apocalyptic stash of dinner mints but I digress).
Anywho. You guys know I love my seven layer/magic bars, so these Turtle Magic Bars were bound to happen. Plus, as a huge fan of Diamond Nuts of California, I of course had to use Diamond of California Chopped Pecans in these bars. Pre-prepped chopped pecans, y’all. It’s a lifesaver, and they don’t get any fresher or tastier than Diamond!
I also spotted Nestle’s newest creation, their Delightfulls Morsels. Have you seen them yet?! They’re chocolate chip morsels that are filled with goodness like caramel, mint, cherry or peanut butter! Since it’s turtle day, I’m obviously using the caramel-filled ones… but I cannot wait to bake with the other flavors!
Okay, so chocolate — check. Caramel — check. Pecans — check. Your mouth — are you ready? Open wide!
- 1 box chocolate cake mix
- 1 egg
- ½ cup oil
- 1 pkg Rolos Minis
- ½ cup Kraft Caramel Bits
- 1 pkg Nestle Tollhouse Delightfulls Caramel Morsels
- About 20 Chips Ahoy Caramel-Filled Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies, roughly chopped
- 1 cup Diamond of California Chopped Pecans
- 1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 13x9" pan with foil, extending the sides of the foil over the edges of the pan. Spray the foil liberally with cooking spray; set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine the cake mix, egg and oil with a rubber spatula until a soft dough has formed. Press the dough evenly into the prepared pan and bake for 12 minutes.
- Immediately remove the pan from the oven and top evenly with the Rolos, caramel bits, caramel-filled morsels, chopped cookies and pecans. Drizzle evenly with the sc milk. Return the pan to the oven and continue to bake for another 18-20 minutes or until the center appears set and the top is golden.
- Cool the bars completely in the pan, then gently lift them out using the foil sides and cut into squares. Serve!
I truly love the flavor of turtles – they’re so irresistibly delicious, combining all those different flavors and textures. Alone as a candy, they’re phenom – but these magic bars are simply mind-blowing! Bursting with buttery caramel, topped with sweetened, crunchy pecans and those pockets of heavenly chocolate just melt in your mouth! I hope you enjoy them as much as I did! 🙂
Have a delicious day!
xo, Hayley
Kayle (The Cooking Actress) says
DOSE PECANS DO! 😛
Seriously these bars look outrageously gooey and yummyyyy
Laura @ Laura's Culinary Adventures says
I need these in my life! I happen to like butterscotch disks 🙂
Julianne @ Beyond Frosting says
Oh, I have been dying to try those caramel filled morsels! Yum!!