German Chocolate Cake Caramel Bars
Fudgy, luscious, and full of chocolate and caramel deliciousness, these bars are the perfect sweet treat. They’re so easy to make, as you begin with a German chocolate cake mix. YUM!

When my parents were over for a holiday in the US a few years ago, one of the ladies at our church invited us to have dinner with her family. She is such a great cook, so we enjoyed the fantastic dinner she prepared.
I was already so happy with what we had that I didn’t care much if I got some dessert after that. But then she truly saved the best for last and gave us this warm-ish caramel-licious dessert topped with ice cream. I couldn’t say no!!

My family enjoyed the dessert so much that they asked me to request a copy so I could make it again. I definitely overcame any shyness I had and asked for the recipe, which she graciously shared with me. Unfortunately, I misplaced the recipe over the next few days and weeks. Arrgh. So when I wanted to make it, I didn’t know how.
Thankfully, one day, I was browsing the cookbook our former church produced, and voila, I noticed the recipe was there!! You won’t believe how happy I was to find this recipe, and I certainly didn’t miss the chance to make it.
When I found the photo I took of the finished yummy treat the other day and realized I still haven’t shared this on the blog, I thought, well, tonight’s the night to write it all up and let everyone enjoy this fantastic dessert!
So here it is! I suggest serving this warm-ish with either some ice cream or pouring cream. If you’re feeling indulgent, drizzle it with extra chocolate or caramel sauce, which I unabashedly did. As you can see, caramel dripping all over in the photo above!! You can never have too much caramel. Enjoy!!


German Chocolate Cake Caramel Bars
Ingredients
- 1 box German chocolate cake mix
- 1 can Evaporated Milk, small
- 3/4 cup Butter, melted
- 1 (16 oz) bag Caramels, unwrapped
- 1 (12 oz) bag Chocolate Chips
- 1 cup Pecans, chopped
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 F. In a large bowl, combine cake mix, 1/2 of the small can of evaporated milk and melted butter. Mix well. Press half of this mixture into a greased 9 x 13 pan. This will serve as the crust. Bake for 7 minutes.
- While baking the cake mixture crust, combine the remaining evaporated milk with the caramels in a saucepan over medium heat. Allow the caramels to melt, stirring often. You can also use the microwave to do this.
- Remove the cake crust mixture from the oven. Sprinkle the entire bag of chocolate chips and the pecans all over the cake. Do not mix. Pour the melted caramels all over.
- Top with spoonfuls of the remaining cake mixture. Bake for another 18-20 minutes or until cooked through. Cool completely before cutting. Serve warmed up or at room temperature. Perfect with vanilla ice cream or extra chocolate or caramel syrup drizzled all over.
Nutrition
Last updated on August 21st, 2024 at 11:24 am
Hello, anxious to try this. What size is the small can of evaporated milk?? Thank you!
Never mind, I just went to the market and see there are only two sizes!! Got the small! thanks
Hi Donna! Glad you found what you were looking for. I am in Asia at the moment so the time difference delays me a bit in answering. Hope you enjoy this. Thanks!!
I was looking for chocolate cake recipe, and got to this place. Love this recipe and there are many more here. I am checking each recipe now 🙂 So helpful!
I am so glad you found us. Please enjoy the recipes. Thanks!!
Do you make cake mix by box directions and then add milk and butter?
Please refer to the recipe because that contains the full instruction on how to make these yummy bars. Thank you!
I was wondering about making the cake mix first by the directions on the box. It doesn’t state and YES I read the full recipe. I find it a bit confusing, thank you.
No. If you follow the instructions – you mix or blend the cake mix with the other ingredients then use half of that mixture as crust then the rest as topping. You also melt the caramels and with the chocolate chips they are the middle layer. Hope that helps. I have reworded the cake mixture as crust for clarity. Thank you and enjoy!