Caramel Peanut Butter Chip Brownies

Do you say "Kar-mul" or "Care-a-mel?" I say the latter. And I say it often. I just love caramel anything. It's my favorite flavor, if you will. So when Leslie, The Hungry Housewife, made some super-simple and oh-so-tasty caramel stuffed brownies, I had to get on that bandwagon.

These are incredibly easy to make. Just prepare a box mix (I used a family size Duncan Hines Dark Chocolate Fudge mix), pour half of it into the pan then arrange a layer of some sort of chocolate covered caramels. I used these:

Feel free to use any kind you want. These come wrapped individually. They make me feel a bit spoiled.

I prepared a  the brownie mix, poured half of the batter into a 9 x 9 pan and strategically placed the unwrapped candy.

I topped it with the remaining batter. Next, because I had some on hand, because they are fantastic with chocolate and most of all because I CAN, I topped the batter with some Reese's Peanut Butter Chips. I baked them according to package directions until they were set in the middle. 

Today one of my other favorite food bloggers, Kristan (Confessions of a Cookbook Queen) posted some Caramel Brownies that have a bit of a different approach but same end result.  Feel free to check our her recipe or Leslie's and decide which one appeals to you most. If you don't want a ton of caramel going on, use mine. If you like more, go with one of theirs. (The candies they used had a bit more caramel punch.)

Enjoy!

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Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownies

There are some small things in my simple life that make the world go 'round.

That first cup of morning coffee with my favorite creamer.

A warm and comfy bed at the end of a long day.

Getting the latest edition of a magazine delivered to my Nook.

Zombies.

You read right. I said zombies.

The Walking Dead on AMC is one of my favorite shows and, to me, every new episode is like Christmas morning! If you are not watching it, you should be. It is one of the best shows on TV right now. Between it, Dexter and American Horror Story I am a happy woman come fall. 

It's funny because I am not a blood and gore type person. And I loathe horror movies. Jason, Freddy, that wacked out pale face from Scream, they scare the bejeezus out of me. This show is pretty stinking bloody. (As are the other two shows I mentioned, but I'll explain my love for them some other time.) For some reason I am intrigued by the whole zombie thing. As far as I am concerned, a zombie apocalypse isn't happening in my lifetime so maybe that makes the idea less threatening. Yes, the show makes me jump and if I watch it before I go to bed it's inevitable that I will dream I am running from zombies all night. But it's SO worth it.

It comes on at 10 so I DVR it and watch it during the day to avoid those zombie dreams. When the first season was on, I could watch it with Baby Mac sound asleep in her bouncy seat. Well, now that she is more than aware of TV, watching it during the day has become a pipe dream. That means this last season's episodes have piled up on my DVR. Monday night, I couldn't stand it any longer. I bit the zombie bullet and got caught up. What a ride! I was exhausted when it was all over. The twists and turns are just so incredibly fun! And I CANNOT wait until the season starts up again in the fall.

I knew what I was getting into so it did not surprise me that I had one of the last shocking images from the finale burned into my brain as I laid in bed. I forced myself to think of something else, and that something became baking. One thing led to another and some leftover peanut butter icing I had in the fridge made it's way onto some dark, fudgy brownies. The following night, I made that fantasy recipe a reality. (And by the way, those forced thoughts of baking saved me from zombies that night.)

Ah, peanut butter and chocolate. A few more small pleasures in life. 

Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownies

1 box Duncan Hines Dark Chocolate Brownie mix (family size), prepared to batter
3/4 cup dark chocolate chips
1/4 cup vegetable shortening
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup peanut butter (or more to taste)
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 cups powdered sugar
2-4 tablespoons milk


Directions:

-Stir chocolate chips into brownie mixture. Pour into a greased 9 x 13 pan and bake according to box directions.

-Meanwhile, beat shortening, butter and peanut butter with electric mixer until creamy. Add vanilla. Add powdered sugar one cup at a time. Add milk 1 tablespoon at a time if frosting becomes to thick to mix. Taste frosting and add more peanut butter if necessary. (I added a few more tablespoons so that the frosting had more of a peanut butter fudge taste.)

-Spread frosting onto brownies as soon as they come out of the oven and allow them to cool completely before cutting.

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What small things in life give you joy?

Monster Brownies

I had all these plans of grandeur for the weekend. They mostly included getting organized and caught up on some chores, but there were a few baking experiments sprinkled in there, too. I got off work at noon yesterday so I had a big head start. The result was going to be a feeling of great accomplishment and preparedness for the week ahead as I tucked myself into bed Sunday night. Ah, the feeling of a weekend full of productivity!

I kissed all of that goodbye about 1:00 yesterday. After I picked up Baby Mac from the sitter, I started feeling pretty crappy. Headache, congestion...you know, all that crazy fun stuff us moms just long for on our days off! I napped while she napped, then put Caillou on repeat once she woke up and settled myself onto the couch. Afternoon wasted. 

Mr. Mac got home and took care of her while I napped some more. I was in bed by 8:30. "OK, now an evening wasted as well, but I will feel better tomorrow for sure!" I thought to myself as I downed some Alka Seltzer cold plus, which usually cures EVERYTHING. Oh, how naive I can be. 

So longer story even longer, today I am still feeling like bubble gum on the bottom of someone's shoe and I am moving in slow motion. If I get laundry done it will be a miracle. 

Until I can get to those "baking experiments" here are some brownies!

There are these things called "Slutty Brownies" making their rounds on Pinterest lately. Supposedly, they are called "Slutty" because they are "easy and a little bit dirty." They consist of three layers: cookie dough,  Oreos and brownie batter. Since I made the Oreo Stuffed Brownies a while back, I decided to go with my favorite candy bar for the middle layer.

Also, since I am not a fan of food names that consist of sexual connotations (big pet peeve) I decided to call these "Monster Brownies." Have you seen Monster Cookies? Kind of the same thought process. 

First, I pressed a roll of refrigerated cookie dough (I let it soften a bit by sitting it on my counter for about an hour) into a 9 x 13 greased pan. 

I chopped two bags of Snickers Minis in half. (I found them on clearance after Easter. Bonus!)

Let's just take a moment to soak all of that in...

I could have stopped right there with a big ole glass of milk, my couch and one of my favorite TV shows. But I thought of you guys and plowed on. The sacrifices we make...

I layered in the chopped Snickers.....

...and followed those by a prepared brownie mix. Then, into the oven. 

These are TOTALLY delicious, but I had some issues.

The recipes I found for the Slutty Brownies all said to bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes. I baked these for an hour and the brownie part still did not get done to my liking.  I didn't realize this until they were cooled which is too late to pop them back into the oven.

The edges were great about two inches into the middle, but from there the brownie part was still too batter-ish for me. Some people I talked to said they are fans of brownie batter but if you are like me and want yours completely baked, you might want to reduce the heat in your oven to 325 and bake them for an hour and 15 minutes to an hour and a half. OR, cut the recipe in half and still use a 9 x 13 pan so that the layers are thinner and bake up better.

Regardless, these were some killer brownies. And you could use just about anything for that middle layer. I even considered Nutter Butters at one point. I bet those would be fantastic!

Let me know what versions you try!

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Thin Mint Stuffed Brownies

I have mentioned the Oreo Stuffed Brownies several times. In fact, you are probably tired of me talking about them. I finally made them this weekend and I am here to tell you, they made time stand still. For a moment, I forgot my name. I finally knew what love was. I was complete. My mouth is watering as I type this.

Since my coworkers get to reap the benefits of the majority of my baking, I let Mr. Mac take that batch of treats to his work this time around. But only after we got our claws into them a good bit. They were a hit!

I still wanted to make something for my work buddies in honor of the upcoming St. Patrick's Holiday and it hit me that Thin Mints and green sprinkles could transform this brownie recipe into the ideal holiday delight.

I used the same recipe from Bridget at Bake at 350, but substituted the Thin Mints in place of the Oreos. Her brownie recipe ROCKS. Alone, without any cookies, it still packs a fudgy, chocolate punch that makes this girl melt. It will definitely be my go-to brownie recipe from now on. Bridget, you're my hero.

See the little Thin Mint treasures hiding in there? Ah, the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

Thin Mint Stuffed Brownies

1 cup dutch-process cocoa*
 1 tsp. coarse salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder
3/4 c. unsalted butter
2 cups sugar
1 TBSP vanilla
3 eggs, lightly beaten with a fork
1 cup unbleached, all-purpose flour
20-25 Thin Mints
1 tsp. corn syrup
1 tsp. water
sprinkles

1. Preheat oven to 350 and grease a 9 x 13 pan. I use the homemade non-stick spread for this.  

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the cocoa, salt and baking soda.

3. In a medium sauce pan, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Stir in the sugar and cook until the mixture is hot, about 1-2 minutes. 

4. Remove from heat and stir in coca mixture until combined. Add the eggs and vanilla and stir until combined. Add the flour and stir until smooth. 

5. Pour half of the batter into your dish. Layer in the Thin Mints and drop the remaining batter by spoonfuls over the cookies. Spread gently with an offset spatula.

6. Bake about 25 minutes until done.

7. Mix corn syrup and water in a small bowl. After the brownies have cooled for about 10 minutes, apply the corn syrup mixture with a pastry brush, then apply sprinkles.

8. Make sure the brownies have completely cooled before cutting. To make the process even smoother, place them in the freezer for about a half an hour beforehand.

*Bridget suggested using dark cocoa. Hershey's makes a Special Dark cocoa, but my grocery store doesn't carry it. I am sure this recipe would be even more exceptional with it. If any of my local buddies find it, let me know!

Happy, early St. Patrick's day!

Oreo Stuffed Brownies

I didn't take this picture! Bake at 350 gets all the credit.

I have a teething toddler on my hands. She currently has 3 honkin' molars coming in at the same time so, needless to say, she is pitiful in every sense of the word. I have not had time to make anything this week.  We are throwing a family baby shower for my sister this weekend so I will have a wonderful post for you on Monday full of sweet treats and great pictures courtesy of my new camera lens! (Fingers crossed it gets delivered tomorrow.)

Until then, check out one of my new favorite places, Bake at 350. She is so unbelievably creative. She makes the most gorgeous cut out cookies and tons of other fun treats. Her site makes me feel like a kid again!

I was thrilled to see her post today. Remember the Birthday Cake Oreos? Look above at the tempting concoction she made with them. Oreo Stuffed Brownies. Holy crap. My mouth is literally watering.