Chocolate Caramel Brownies

I made these brownies for Bible Study and my co-workers last week, and received mouthfuls of "Oh my gooooooodness!!!!" along with requests for the recipe - that, and Grace has requested that people post more recipes. But...

BEWARE.

These are brownies that you should only make if you are ready for the chocolate-caramel frenzy this will induce in all of your friends and family.

I've warned you.

My family affectionately calls these brownies “Diet Bars” – I can’t imagine why…

The recipe is very simple, and doesn’t really even have any measurements (that’s how we roll on my dad’s side of the family).  Basically this means that anyone can make it.

Here’s what you’ll need:

1 box of German chocolate cake mix
3/4 c. of melted butter
1 small can of sweetened condensed milk*
1 (6 oz.) package of caramels**
6 oz. (or more!) of chocolate chips

*Here’s the deal. Because of how the cans of sweetened condensed milk are these days, it means that you will have leftover milk if you only make one batch of these. Now, if you double the recipe, the measurements work out JUST right for a large can of milk, about 14 oz. Darn, I guess I have to always make a double recipe…

**You should probably unwrap the caramels. Just sayin’.

Mix together the cake mix, melted butter, and 1/3 c. of sweetened condensed milk.  You can also optionally add chopped nuts, but I never do this.

Butter. Quite possibly the greatest gift to bakers (besides chocolate) EVAH!

Take 2/3 of this mixture and press it into a lightly greased 9" x 13" baking pan, so that the bottom of the pan is covered. Bake this at 350 degrees for about 6 minutes.

You should probably wash your hands before doing this step.

When you take it out of the oven, let it cool. While you’re waiting through the smell of chocolatey goodness, unwrap the caramels. Pour 1/3 c. of the sweetened condensed milk over the caramels in a bowl, and microwave to melt them together. I recommend microwaving for 1 minute, then stirring, then microwaving in 30 second intervals while stirring in between. This avoids burning, which you don’t want. When it is all liquid and mixed together, you’re ready.

Spread the caramel mixture over the lightly baked cake base. Sprinkle chocolate chips over the top of the caramel, as little or as many as you want.

This is about when I decided that maybe it was time to go on a diet...

Crumble the remaining cake mixture in crumbs over the caramel and chocolate. Continue baking for another 20 minutes.

Sorry if I drooled into the pan.

You can check to see if it’s finished by sticking a toothpick or fork into the center of the brownies – beware though that the caramel and melted chocolate chips could throw you off. I can also tell by just giving the pan a little shake back and forth – if the brownies still move like liquid, you can tell they need a couple of more minutes. You do want them to have a bit of give though, because they will continue to cook in the pan a bit after you take them out. Plus, these brownies are better soft and gooey.

You should probably remove these from the oven before eating. Patience is a virtue, people.

...and this is when I decided that my diet could wait a few more days.

ENJOY!

~*~

Liesl’s extra-special, super-secret tip for keeping your brownies fresh longer.

So you just HAD to make 2 batches so the milk measurements worked out, didn’t you?

Now I am usually nice, and share these extra brownies with friends, co-workers, etc. However, if you want to be a pig and keep them all for yourself, you’re going to want to keep them moist and chewy.

Store them in a sealed container, and after a day or two, place a slice of bread in with the brownies in the sealed container. The brownies will soak up any moisture from the bread, keeping them moist and chew-tastic. You may need to replace the bread after a day or so if you are continuing to store them.

Tasty Iced Pumpkin Cookies!

I made these cookies for my weekly Bible study snack last night, and they were a hit with most of the Newman Center crowd! Many asked for me to share the recipe, so I thought I would post it here so everyone can enjoy these tasty, but easy to make, treats! I found the original recipe online, but altered it a bit because some of the spices are pretty expensive. Hope you enjoy!

Iced Pumpkin Cookies

Deliciousness larger than pictured.

Cookies:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon (you can fudge this number to your taste preference)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups white sugar
1 cup canned pumpkin puree
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Glaze Icing:
2 cups confectioners' sugar
3 tablespoons milk
1 tablespoon melted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). 
2. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt in a large bowl and mix thoroughly. Set aside.
3. In a medium bowl, cream together the 1/2 cup of butter and white sugar. Add pumpkin, egg, and vanilla to this mixture, and beat until creamy. 
4. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the pumpkin mixture while mixing. The dough will be thick, but smooth.
5. Drop rounded spoonfuls on a cookie sheet. I just used two spoons to form little cookie lumps.
6. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes in the preheated oven. (*For the inexperienced baker, try 15 minutes to start - you don't want to over-bake your cookies!)
7. Cool the cookies on the baking sheet or a cooling rack.
8. While the cookies are cooling, make the glaze icing.
Combine confectioners' sugar, milk, melted butter, and vanilla. Add additional milk if needed to maintain drizzling consistency, but you shouldn't need this unless you make the icing in advance and store it in the refrigerator.
9. Once the cookies are cool to the touch, use a form to drizzle the glaze on top of the cookies. 
10. Voila! You have a delicious treat with which wow your friends! This recipe makes 36 large cookies, or about 50-60 regular size cookies.

Liesl's Special Trick:

To keep the cookies soft and moist - even after a couple of days - place them in a covered container soon after they have cooled.

For some of my cookies, I let them cool about an hour before drizzling with icing, while I drizzled the icing on straight out of the oven so it had a melted glaze look for other cookies.

After I glazed them, I stored them in a covered container in layers separated by wax paper, refrigerating each layer for a few minutes to cool the glaze so they didn't stick to the paper. Covering the cookies soon while they are still fresh helps them maintain their soft, moist consistency for a couple of days.