Malted Gooey Cake Bars

gooey bars with chocolate candies baked in.

5 from 1 vote

Gooey cake bars are the easiest dessert you'll ever make. Add some Ovaltine and Whoppers or Robin Eggs and you have a malted version! These are perfect for a potluck because everyone will love them.

Prep Time20

Cook Time30

Total Time50

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Servings: bars

Calories: 94kcal

Author: Dorothy Kern

Cost: 5

Ingredients

1 approx 15 ounce yellow cake mix
½ cup (113g) unsalted butter , softened
1 large egg
1 tablespoon nonfat milk
¼ cup + 3 tablespoons Ovaltine (malted milk powder), divided
½ cup sweetened condensed milk
1 ¼ cups malted milk balls (Whoppers or mini Robin Eggs), lightly crushed, divided

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 9x9” pan with foil and spray liberally with cooking spray so that the bars don’t stick.
Add cake mix, butter, egg, milk, and ¼ cup Ovaltine to the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix until a thick dough forms. Note: you can do this with a hand mixer but it will take a long time for the dough to come together, so just be prepared.
Press about half of the dough into the bottom of the prepared pan. Stir 3 tablespoons of Ovaltine into the sweetened condensed milk and pour over the top of the base. Sprinkle 1 cup of the crushed malted candy over the top.
Separate remaining dough into small balls and evenly space over the top of the bars. Press down to flatten. Sprinkle with the remaining ¼ cup of malted candy and press lightly to stick.
Bake bars for about 25-30 minutes, or until they just begin to brown. Cool completely before slicing, otherwise the mixture will be too gooey to cut. Optional: eat straight from pan with a fork.

Notes

To make your Easter cookie bars more chocolatey, sprinkle some mini chocolate chips on the dough before baking.
Chill them before slicing so they'll slice easily.
Swap Whoppers if you can't find the Robins Eggs.

Nutrition