Basement brownies have a decadent layer of caramel and chocolate chips. You won't believe how easy they are, too!
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If you are looking for Garden Tuesday - I posted yesterday - Columbine Flowers.
You know what I wish? For world peace, of course, but also that chocolate was a food a group. I'd like to see it on the food pyramid. Not at the pointy tippy top, but a nice big fat layer at the bottom of the pyramid. Wouldn't that be lovely? Don't get me wrong, I love fruits and veggies and all the other good things holding their rightful place in the pyramid, but I love chocolate more. On The Chopped Podcast, one of the things Marly from Namely Marly, usually asks is what food could you not live without. I'm surprised at the number of people who do not say chocolate!
The beauty of chocolate is that so many things go with it. My personal favorite is more chocolate. Yes, chocolate goes with chocolate. More chocolate goes with more chocolate. While my ultimate favorite chocolate is usually fudge or a flourless chocolate something or other (the less things getting in the way of my chocolate the better), brownies are a close third. Brownies are little squares of chocolate celebration. I can think of no better way to celebrate brownies than by adding a layer of caramel and chocolate chips. There's that chocolate with chocolate thing again, and the caramel just makes it all gooey and slows down your eating so you can savor the chocolate even longer!
This month's Creative Cookie Exchange theme was caramel. I went searching high and low for a recipe featuring chocolate and caramel. I didn't have to look far, since this is a match made in heaven. The trick was narrowing it down to the easiest, because that's how I roll. Basement brownies found at Recipe Girl were the obvious choice. It's made with cake mix, which I guess some people would consider a cheat, but I consider it a perfectly lovely way to omit a few steps from a recipe. The hardest part of this recipe is waiting for the caramel to melt. Seriously.
You basically melt some caramel candies in some evaporated milk. You mix up cake mix and spread half of it in a pan. Back for a short amount of time, add a layer of chocolate chips and caramel and top with the rest of the cake mix and finish baking. That's it.
Basement Brownies #CreativeCookieExchange
Ingredients
- 50 to 60 caramels , unwrapped (I used an 11 ounce bag)
- One box German Chocolate Cake Mix
- 1 cup evaporated milk , divided
- 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) salted butter, melted
- One 12 ounce package semi-sweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350. Grease and flour (or use a baking spray) a 9x9 pan (I used 8x8 and it worked perfectly fine).
- Place a 1/3 cup of the evaporated milk and the caramels in small saucepan. Heat over medium low, stirring until caramels melt and the mixture is smooth.
- In a medium size bowl mix 2/3 cup of evaporated milk and the cake mix by hand until the batter is smooth and everything is combined.
- Spoon about 1/2 the batter into the cake pan and smooth it out. Bake for about 8 minutes and then remove from the oven. Sprinkle the chocolate chips over the top and then drizzle on the caramel sauce. Spoon the rest of the batter over the top. Try to spread it around a bit without disturbing the chocolate chips and caramel - it might not cover the whole top.
- Return to the oven and bake for 20 more minutes or until brownies are set in the middle and the edges are slightly crispy. It will set up more as it cools.
- Cool the brownies completely before cutting.
Nutrition
The theme this month is Caramel--any kind of caramel in any kind of cookie! If you are a blogger and want to join in the fun, contact Laura at thespicedlife AT gmail DOT com and she will get you added to our Facebook group, where we discuss our cookies and share links. Please be patient though, as this month Laura is off to Italy and will not be checking email quite as often!
You can also just use us as a great resource for cookie recipes--be sure to check out our Pinterest Board and our monthly posts (you can find all of them at The Spiced Life). You will be able to find them the first Tuesday after the 15th of each month! Also, if you are looking for inspiration to get in the kitchen and start baking, check out what all of the hosting bloggers have made:
- Basement Brownies from Sidewalk Shoes
- Camel Milk Caramel Basbousa from Food Lust People Love
- Caramel Cashew Cookies from Our Good Life
- Caramel Coconut Cookies from Basic N Delicious
- Caramel Shortbread Cookie Strips from Magnolia Days
- Caramel Thumbprint Cookies from Cookie Dough and Oven Mitt
- Caramelized White Chocolate and Cranberry Cookies from Baking Yummies
- Chocolate Caramel Shortbread Bars from The Spiced Life
- Chocolate Caramel Rocks from Karen’s Kitchen Stories
- Chocolate Walnut Caramel Stuffed Cookies from Noshing with the Nolands
- Eggless Vanilla-Caramel Biscotti from What Smells So Good?
- Millionaire Shortbread Bars from Spiceroots
- Salted Caramel Butter Cookies from SimplyVeggies
- Salted Caramel Macarons from A Baker’s House
- Take 5 Caramel Oatmeal Cookies from 2 Cookin’ Mamas
Ooh that ooey gooey center! Seriously dangerous and delicious brownies!
This is one of my favorite recipes! My neighbors thought they were excellent and they were the hit of our party! Cake mix or not, they are amazing!
That looks decadent but certainly a must-try! Pinned.
Need this right now! Anything with caramel is amazing and I love how it is seeping from the edges in your pics!
What a brilliant idea to use chocolate cake mix. Chocolate and more chocolate is definitely the key to a good brownie. These looks beyond amazing.
The caramel oozing out of these just really got to me. They look incredible!
Hello beautiful! This looks so amazing. Pinned and tweeted. I hope to see you on Monday at 7pm because we love to party with you! Happy Memorial Day! Lou Lou Girls
I love chocolate too Pam and I can only imagine how good these brownies must taste 🙂
These look amazing. Nothing like chocolate and caramel, which is why candy bar companies make millions! Thank you!
Yep!
Chocolate IS a food group. Jeffrey's book about Dragon (from 20+ years ago) said that Chocolate was one of the 5 food groups. And who wouldn't believe a smiling, fat blue dragon.
AND, mixes are a very legit part of life. If they weren't, God wouldn't have created Betty Crocker and Pillsbury for us, right? These brownies look just great.
Of course I choose today to catch up with you.... I'm on a diet LOL
I'll save them for later and try not to think of them 😉
xo
I don't know if chocolate is its own food group, but brownies sure are! GREG
I agree!
I luuurve chocolate, and caramel isn't bad either =) these brownies sound so decadent!! Perfect for a pot luck (because I'd have to get them out of the house so I wouldn't eat them ALL)!
I would love to have them right now...
Your brownies are calling my name! I have to confess I'm a chocoholic too! And the more the merrier! When you added the chocolate chips to the brownie layer all I could do was sigh. 🙂 I know I'll be making these soon!
Let me know what you think!
Oh my heavens, those are making me drool, nicely done!!
Chocolate has health benefits! Especially dark chocolate. We have one woman at work who actually does not like chocolate. At all. We think she is an alien 🙂
I know people that don't like chocolate. I don't trust them.
The challenge for me would be to unwrap all of those caramels without eating every other one! One for me...one for the recipe...two for me...one for the recipe. These look amazing!!!
I know!
Chocolate is right at the bottom of the food pyramid for me ; at least the one I draw in my mind :)) And then there is caramel! Love your decadent brownies!!
Thank you!
I am with you on chocolate as a food group. I'm not sure I'd want it on the bottom..but maybe one of the middle ones. Next to vegetables. 🙂 And these brownies could be our mascot!
All right, one of the middle ones 🙂
What? Chocolate isn't a food group. Darn it.
I know!