Oatmeal Chocolate Caramel Bars

A cousin to these gems.

2 C. quick or old-fashioned oats, uncooked
2 C. all-purpose flour
1-1/2 C. firmly packed brown sugar
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 C. butter, softened
1 bag (12 oz.) semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 jar (17 oz.) Mrs. Richardson's Butterscotch Caramel Topping

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray or grease 9x13-inch baking pan. Combine oats, flour, brown sugar, baking soda, and salt; mix well. Stir in butter until mixture is crumbly. Reserve 1 cup mixture; press remaining onto bottom of prepared pan. Bake 10-12 minutes or until light brown in color. Sprinkle with chocolate chips. Drizzle caramel topping to within 1/2 inch of edges. Sprinkle with remaining crumb mixture. Bake 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool completely; cut into bars.

Notes: The recipe originally called for 1-1/2 C. butter. I don't like butter very much, so I reduced the amount by 1/2 C. and I thought it tasted better. I recommend NOT substituting another brand for the Mrs. Richardson's Butterscotch Caramel topping called for in the recipe. I attempted this and it was disastrous. The other brand I used was VERY sweet, had a more runny consistency, and just didn't have the same buttery goodness that Mrs. Richardson's has. The other brand didn't make the bars inedible, just not as good. I also used exam gloves to mix spread the crust in the pan. The mixture didn't stick to my fingers and cleanup was so easy!