Salted Caramel Brownies

 

I don't make New Year's resolutions. Maybe I should, but I just can't be bothered... especially since January has got to be the worst time to summon the motivation to go for a run or cut back on carbs. January/February is the time of year when I feel like napping, eating warm things from the oven, and watching every season of Friday Night Lights.

It was that kind of a weekend about a year ago when we visited my boyfriend's mom in Calgary. We kind of just stayed in, ate good food, cuddled with her dog and watched SNL. It was so nice. She had made a pan of Ina Garten's salted caramel brownies and we nibbled on them all weekend (and for a while afterwards, since she packed them up and sent them with us).

If you're the kind of person who powers through the dark, chilly winter in order to keep to your fitness or nutrition regimen, I applaud you. I am trying (I got a Fitbit Force a few weeks ago and it's helping me keep track of my daily activity), but I can't see anything wrong with keeping something like these brownies in your freezer, for those nights where you just want to snuggle under a blanket and really get your money's worth out of Netflix. 



Salted Caramel Brownies
From Barefoot Contessa Foolproof: Recipes You Can Trust

Makes one 9x13 pan, about 18 brownies

1 cup unsalted butter
8 oz (230 g), plus 6 oz (170 g) semisweet chocolate chips
3 oz (85 g) unsweetened chocolate
3 eggs
1 1/2 tbsp instant coffee granules
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1 cup plus 2 tbsp sugar
1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp all-purpose flour, divided
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 to 2/3 cup good quality caramel sauce
2 to 3 tsp flaked sea salt
Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C and lightly grease a 9x13 inch baking pan.

Melt the butter, 8 ounces (230 g) of the chocolate chips, and the unsweetened chocolate together in a glass or metal bowl placed over a pot of simmering water. Once everything is completely melted, take it off the heat and let it cool for about 15 minutes. In a large bowl, gently stir together the eggs, coffee, vanilla, and sugar (just stir, don't beat). Gradually stir the melted chocolate into the egg mixture and set aside - if it hasn't cooled down to room temperature, let it sit until it does.

In a separate bowl, sift 1/2 cup of the flour with the baking powder and salt. Add this to the chocolate mixture and stir till combined. Toss the remaining 6 ounces (170 g) of chocolate chips with the remaining 2 tablespoons of flour in a small bowl, then add to the batter. (NOTE: It's important that the batter isn't still warm when you add the chocolate chips, as you really don't want them to melt into the batter just yet). Spread the batter evenly in your prepared pan.

Bake for about 30-35 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. I would err on the side of undercooking rather than overcooking, but give them at least 30 minutes.

While the brownies are still warm in the pan, drizzle the caramel sauce over top (you may need to microwave your caramel for a few seconds to get the right drizzling consistency). Sprinkle the sea salt over the caramel. You can either cut them up and wrap them in wax or parchment paper and store them in the freezer, or eat them out of the pan. You know your limits, I'm not gonna tell you to slow down.