Salted Caramel Brownies

As anyone who has children, works with children, or knows children, will tell you sometimes at the end of the day you need a little chocolate.  It is for this reason that I keep an emergency stash of chocolate in my desk drawer at work.  Recently I had one of those days and when I went to have some chocolate to erase the irritations of the day I discovered something horrible, my stash was empty.  After some desperate rooting around I found a lone milky way in the back of the drawer and a crisis was averted but needless to say that night I set about replenishing my stash.  Since I am off of peanut butter right now my choices were pretty limited.  Luckily, Josh found a half bag of Dove's sea salt caramel dark chocolate promises.  I brought some of them to school but I saved 16 of them at home because they had given me an idea.

I hesitated to even post this because it is barely a recipe, but I figured people might have some extra candy around after last night, and they were sooooo good that I had to share with you all.  Start out with a box of brownie mix.  I use the Ghiradelli triple chocolate brownie mix.

Yes I do buy the Costco box because this mix is that good.  I love homemade brownies as much as the next girl, but boxed brownies are one of those few pre-made things that can really hit the spot without making you feel like you're settling.  Not to mention the fact that they get brownies in your face a lot faster which is always a plus.

Preheat your oven to 325, then spray a square baking pan with baking spray and stick it in the freezer.  Prepare your mix according to the instructions on the package.  Mine called for some oil, water, and an egg.  Then pour half of it into your baking pan.

Unwrap 16 Dove sea salt caramel dark chocolate promises.  This is literally the most time consuming part of this recipe.  Once they are all unwrapped lay them on top of the brownie batter in the pan.

Next get some caramel sauce, I used Trader Joe's fleur de sel caramel sauce, and melt it so that it is pourable.  I just microwaved mine for about 20 seconds.  Drizzle that sweet and salty goodness all over the candies.

Cover the candies and caramel with the rest of the brownie batter, using a spatula to spread it around.  Finally, get some flaky sea salt and sprinkle it on top.

Have you tried this Maldon sea salt yet?  It is crazy how sprinkling a little of this stuff on top of a sweet treat can elevate the flavor from great to out-of-this-world.

That's it.  Pop it in the oven and bake according to the instructions on the box.  I baked mine for 40 minutes because I like them to be super gooey.  You may want to hang out outside while these are baking because your kitchen is going to smell divine and it is somewhat tortuous to have to wait for them to be ready.

Let them cool before you cut them or you will have a big mess.  It will still taste phenomenal, but they need to be completely cool to cut them into bars.

These brownies are thick, fudgy, and filled with gooey caramel goodness.  I highly recommend having an ice-cold glass of milk nearby and if you don't want to eat the whole pan yourself, take them to a party because otherwise, you may not be able to resist.

Salted Caramel Brownies

• 1 package Ghiradelli triple chocolate brownie mix 
• 1/3 cup oil
• 1/3 cup water
• 1 egg
• 16 Dove salted caramel dark chocolate promises
• 1/4 cup fleur de sel caramel sauce
• 1/4 tsp. Maldon sea salt flakes

1. Preheat oven to 325.  Spray a square baking pan with baking spray and put in freezer for 10 minutes.
2. Combine oil, egg, and water.  Add brownie mix and stir until combined.  Then pour half of the brownie batter into the prepared pan.
3. Lay the Dove promises on top of the brownie batter in four rows of four.
4. Put the caramel sauce in a microwave safe measuring cup and microwave for about 20 seconds until it is pourable.  Drizzle the caramel sauce all over the Dove promises.
5. Pour the rest of the brownie batter on top of the caramel sauce and spread it around with a rubber spatula.
6. Sprinkle the sea salt flakes all over the top of the brownie batter.
7. Bake at 325 for 40-50 minutes or until as baked as you desire.
8. Let cool completely before cutting into squares. 

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