preheat oven to 350° and prepare a 9x13" baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.

while you're preparing the cookie/base and your oven is preheating, spead the pecans out on a cookie sheet and toast in the oven for about 10 minutes. be careful not to burn them. I also like to toast the oats at the same time. it adds a nice crisp texture and a slightly nutty flavor.

in a large mixing bowl combine flour, oats, salt, brown sugar, baking soda and melted butter. mix until thoroughly combined. it will be moist but a bit crumbly.

press half of the oat/flour mixture in the bottom of the prepared baking dish and bake approx 13 min. the edges will be lightly browned.

as soon as the base comes out of the oven sprinkle the chocolate chips and pecans over it, distributing evenly. you'll need your caramel to be a pourable consistency but not super runny. if you're using a jarred sauce (I.e. ice cream topping) you might want to add a few tbs of flour to it so it'll set up nicely. pour the caramel over the chocolate and nut covered base. don't worry about covering every little corner as it'll spread out in the oven. if you're using the sea salt then now is the time to sprinkle it over the caramel. take your remaining oat/flour mixture and crumble it over the top. again, don't worry about covering every inch. it will spread out and puff slightly during baking. just try to get as even a thickness as you can.

place back in the oven for another 18 minutes. the top will be a nice golden brown when cooked. now for the tough part.... once out of the oven you need to let them cool all the way before cutting them into squares. it'll take several hours but I promise it'll be worth the wait. these are very rich and very sweet but absolutely delicious. I do recommend using the little sprinkle of sea salt as it really creates an amazing flavor.

*CARAMEL - of course you can use any store bought caramel that you like, but if you'd like to make an easy homemade version it really improves the final product. to do this all you need is 2 14 oz cans of sweetened condensed milk. if you have a crockpot, put the UNOPENED cans of milk in and completely cover with water. turn your crockpot to low and set it for 5 1/2 hours. its a good idea to check on it every once in a while to ensure the cans are fully submerged. you can also do this on the stove top with a large pot of gently boiling water. you'll only need about 4 hours for this method. once the time is up remove the cans to a bowl of cold water to cool. its best to let them cool all the way before opeing them just in case of any air bubbles. just to be on the safe side. ;) you will have some of the caramel left over so just store it in an airtight container in the fridge. you can use it for ice cream topping or even a spoonful in a cup of coffee. yum!

I really hope you enjoy this easy recipe and find it as delicious as I do.