In little to no time, you’ll have these wonderful chocolate chip Nutella bars in the oven and baking. Made (mostly) in one bowl by hand, you don’t need any fancy equipment nor even any kitchen skill – they’re so simple.
Inspired by my love of Nutella and both these caramel chocolate chip cookie bars and chocolate chip cheesecake bars.
Why you’ll love it
Loaded with chocolate chips and a thick layer of gooey Nutella, these chocolate chip Nutella bars are undeniably delicious.
- Mix by hand – no special equipment necessary.
- One bowl – aside from combining the dry ingredients separately first, this dough all comes together in one bowl.
- So easy – anyone will be able to make these, even beginner bakers.
- Chocolatey and rich – chocolate in two forms.
- Gooey in the middle – the Nutella stays perfectly gooey and delicious.
- Portable – Been asked to bring a dessert? These will not disappoint.
These Nutella cookie bars have been a hit throughout my recipe testing phase with many coming back for seconds. And, you may never want a normal chocolate chip cookie again.
As with a lot of my chocolate cookie bakes, I top these Nutella bars with just a light sprinkling of sea salt – I’m talking just a pinch over the entire pan. It adds just this little salty kick to each bite and balances out all that sweet chocolate beautifully. You are more than welcome to leave it off if you don’t like the salty-sweet combo.
Ingredients for chocolate chip Nutella bars
Detailed quantities and instructions in the recipe card below.
- Nutella: Well of course you need Nutella. I have tried another brand of chocolate hazelnut spread and it didn’t work so well – I found Nutella kept the best texture.
- Flour: Plain flour / all-purpose flour.
- Cornflour: Cornflour (aka cornstarch) gives these cookies a slight softness that is really lovely.
- Sugar: There is both white granulated sugar and brown sugar in these Nutella bars. They each give their own flavour and texture.
- Butter: Use unsalted butter so you can control the salt level.
- Milk: Just a little milk adds moisture to the cookie dough.
- Oil: The oil keeps these cookie bars moist on the inside.
- Baking soda: Also known as bicarbonate of soda, baking soda gives the cookie a little lift.
- Salt: A little salt is added to the dough for balance but I also add a touch of sea salt flakes to finish.
- Vanilla: Use a pure vanilla extract as opposed to vanilla essence – the latter is synthetic, not natural.
How to make them
Chocolate chip Nutella bars are incredibly easy to make. If the dough gets a bit tricky to fold the chocolate chips in, don’t be afraid to use your hands.
Detailed instructions in the recipe card below.
- Melt the butter: Melt the butter in the microwave until it’s just melted, then set it aside to cool a little.
- Dry ingredients: Combine flour, baking soda and salt in a bowl and whisk to aerate and disperse everything.
- Wet ingredients: In another bowl, use a balloon whisk to mix together the sugars, butter, oil, milk and vanilla (photo 1).
- Mix the two: Now add the dry ingredients to the wet and use a spatula to mix until combined. Add the chocolate chips (photo 2) and mix those in as well. Use your hands if you need to.
- Assemble the cookie bars: Take half of the cookie dough and press it into the base of a 9 inch square baking pan. Top it with the Nutella and spread it evenly over the dough (photo 3). Now scatter the remaining dough loosely over the top (photo 4).
- Bake: Place the pan in preheated oven and bake for 28-30 minutes or until turning golden on top.
You’ll need to let the cookie bars cool for a while in the tin until it’s easy to remove them. Simply cut into slices once cooled and serve. At room temperature, chocolate chip Nutella bars will still be a bit gooey. The chocolate chips can take a while to set firm again but you can put them in the fridge to do that or just eat them as is, like I do.
Tips and tricks
- Cool the butter: Make sure you melt the butter as the first step and only until it’s just melted. This way it can cool enough by the time you add it to the dough. You don’t want it to be hot but tepid is fine.
- Cut when cool: You’ll get the neatest cuts once the bars, including the chocolate chips, have fully set. As this can take a while at room temperature, feel free to speed it up in the fridge.
- Don’t press the top down: While you do need to press the bottom layer together, the top layer of cookie dough can just be scattered over the top.
- If you prefer a softer cookie bake the cookie bars for less time. While the bottom of these bars are chewy the top is crunchy so that it’s like a crunchy crumble topping. Simply bake it 5-7 minutes less for a softer cookie.
Storage
These Nutella bars will keep 4-5 days in an airtight container in a cool place. They can be chilled if you prefer.
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If you try this chocolate chip Nutella bars recipe, please take a moment to leave a rating and comment below. I love hearing from you, and it helps other readers too!
More recipes you’ll love
- Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
- Nutella puff pastry twists
- Ferrero Rocher Brownies
- Nutella Hand Pies
- Nutella Chocolate Sandwich Cookies
- Chocolate chunk cookies
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Ingredients
- 57 g unsalted butter, melted and cooled (½ stick / ¼ cup / 2oz)
- 260 g plain (all purp) flour (2 cups / 9.2oz)
- 90 g cornflour (cornstarch) (⅔ cup / 3.2oz) c(notes)
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda (bicarb soda)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 150 g light brown sugar (¾ cup / 5.3oz)
- 100 g granulated white sugar (½ cup / 3.5oz)
- ¼ cup vegetable oil (60ml)
- ¼ cup whole milk (60ml)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¾ cup dark chocolate chips
- 1 cup Nutella (310g / 11oz)
- pinch sea salt flakes
For best results, always weigh ingredients where a weight is provided
Instructions
- Make sure the butter is melted and set aside to cool slightly.
- Preheat oven to 180C / 350F /160C fan forced. Line a 9 inch square baking tin with baking paper.
- Sift together the flour, cornflour, baking soda and salt in a medium mixing bowl and whisk using a balloon whisk to aerate and disperse.
- In a large bowl whisk together both sugars, butter, oil, milk and vanilla.
- Use a spatula to mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until 80% combined.
- Add the chocolate chips to the dough. Fold through or use your hands to mix them through well.
- Scatter half of the cookie dough in small clumps into the lined tin, then press down all over to flatten out and level.
- Heat the nutella for 20 seconds in the microwave then spread it over the cookie base. Scatter the remaining cookie dough, in small pieces evenly over the top of the Nutella layer until it is well covered – don’t press it down.
- Bake for 28-30 minutes (or until turning golden), turning half way through.
- Allow to cool in the tin for at least 45 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Please take a moment to rate this recipe. I really appreciate it and it helps me create more recipes.
Notes
- I use a combination of plain flour and cornflour (cornstarch) as a replacement for cake flour. Feel free to use cake flour for both quantities, if you prefer.
- For best results you should always weigh ingredients like flour and sugar. Kitchen scales like these are relatively cheap but if you can’t weigh the ingredients, use the spoon and level method (don’t scoop).
- All ovens vary – check your bake 3-4 minutes before the recipe suggests.
- These cookie bars have a crunchy topping. If you prefer it softer, remove them from the oven 5-7 minutes earlier.
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6 Comments on “Chocolate Chip Nutella Bars”
Amazing and so easy!
So happy you love them, Ana.
Very easy to make and very yummy 👍
Thanks so much, Umber. So happy you love them.
Say what?! Nutella, chocolate, and shortbread base? That’s such a scrumptious (and dangerous) combos. These beauties will disappear I no time!
They’re not-surprisingly quite addictive. Thanks so much Ben.