Caramel Brownies

So I felt a little guilty last night posting about my caramel brownie sundae and then not sharing the recipe for the brownies. Thankfully Darrell and I hadn't quite yet eaten through the pan (which we may or may not have made on Sunday), so I was able to snag a few to grab a good picture (I suppose I could have just reused the one of the sundae; of all the times we've made these I'd never tried serving them warm with ice cream and it was definitely a win in my book). I love that these brownies remind me of the easy "boxed" caramel brownie mixes you can buy in the store but they pack a lot more flavor without being that much more difficult (these also "cheat" a little bit by using a boxed cake mix). As I alluded to earlier, we've made these quite a few times and they are always a hit, even to a friend who was (supposedly) not a fan of brownies.

Caramel Brownies
(not sure where we got this from, but I'm forever indebted!)

1 14 oz package of caramels, unwrapped
1/3 cup sweetened condensed milk*
1 package chocolate cake mix (with pudding in the mix--Pillsbury works well)
3/4 cup butter, melted
1/3 cup sweetened condensed milk*
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

*the original recipe calls for evaporated milk, but I errantly used sweetened condensed one time and we both loved it and haven't looked back since!

In a heavy saucepan, combine caramels and 1/3 cup of milk. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly until smooth. In a large bowl, stir together cake mix, melted butter, and remaining 1/3 cup milk until dough sticks together. Do not use a mixer. Press half the dough into a greased 9x13 pan. Bake for ten minutes in a 350* oven. Remove from oven and sprinkle chocolate chips over the top. Pour caramel mixture evenly over the chips. Crumble the remaining dough over the caramel layer. Bake for an additional 15 to 18 minutes. Cool completely before cutting.

The toughest thing about this recipe is gauging when the bars are done. Because of the caramel layer, it's hard to use the ole "toothpick in the middle" trick. The best advice I can give is to watch for the edges pulling away from the edge slightly. It may appear to be undercooked when you pull it from the oven, but it will firm up as it cools. And be sure to give it plenty of time to cool or you'll have an ooey-gooey mess if you try to cut them and serve them too soon. Enjoy!