Tomorrow on {pretty, happy, funny, real} I will update you on Memorial Day weekend's doings, but right now I will give you the sneak peek of one of the yummy things we ate at, among other events, Deirdre's baby Finnabee shower!
Because, yummy.
Bridget and I made these Caramel Sea Salt Brownies together (she made the brownies, I made the caramel, because it takes two people to bake in someone else's apartment, if only to up the confusion factor).
First, make your brownies.
This is my recipe — the one I always use now. I wrote it down when Joseph, then about twelve, made them and they were just right. Of course I had made brownies before then, but never with any certainty that this was “my” recipe.
I don't know which cookbook he got it from, but when you find something you like, just write it down and keep it in your folder. It's a keeper. No reason to be hunting up a brownie recipe every time. (This cappuccino brownie recipe is the only other one I make.)
I know that some of the kids have the same recipe and use it often. Sukie had it, and we were in her kitchen, so that's what we used. Which, phew, because I hadn't brought it along or anything!
{Edited to add: I'm worried this didn't come through strongly enough. This (the base recipe, though I'm sure the caramel and sea salt variation is scrumptious) is the go-to brownie recipe you've been looking for. When what you want is a brownie, this is what you want. It's easy (everything mixes up in the pot!), fast, foolproof, and uses only ingredients you already have in your pantry. Bake them up on a weeknight to win your family's undying love and affection, bring them to a bbq and watch them disappear, or serve them with a scoop of ice cream for an easy company dessert. You can't go wrong. True, they are rich, but let's be real here: what you're looking for is a brownie, not some sissy brownie-scented bar. This is it. Trust me. xoxo, Rosie.}
This is what it says, under all those scribblings:
Brownies
1 cup butter
2 cups sugar
2 tsp. vanilla
4 eggs
1 cup flour
2/3 cup cocoa
1/2 tsp. baking powder (omit for fudgy brownies — but really, these are fudgy. Sometimes I put it in, sometimes I don't, sometimes I put in 1/4 tsp. as a compromise. They are always good brownies.)
1/2 tsp. salt
(1 cup chopped nuts — if I were on my own, I would put chopped pecans in, but others complain so I don't)
Preheat oven to 350.
In a 3 qt. saucepan, melt the butter. Then add the sugar and the eggs, beating them in well. Add the vanilla. Add the other ingredients (mixing everything in that same saucepan — so you see, this is just as easy as a mix, and better because obviously butter is way better than oil).
Don't over-beat. The other only possible way to go wrong is if you add the eggs when the butter is too hot, which would cook the eggs and prevent them from doing their rising thing at the proper time — just make sure you take the butter off the heat and add the sugar to cool it down and you'll be fine.
Put into a buttered lasagna-sized pan (about 13″ x 9″). This is a double recipe right off the bat. You will see that I went ahead and inked in some other measurements, because a large family really needs a bigger batch even than “doubled.” For my extra-large white enamel pan (that Habou found at a yard sale — it's more like 19″ x 11 1/2″, fits 3 chickens for roasting, and in general is the most useful pan ever) you need 1 1/2 recipes. I find it easiest to just go ahead and write all those amounts in. The brownies freeze perfectly if you can hide them.
Bake for 20 minutes or until slightly pulling away from the sides of the pan.
Caramel Sea Salt Version
When you've gotten the brownies into the pan, but before baking them, drizzle some caramel onto the batter.
Caramel is fairly easy to make, but you have to work quickly (and this is where having two people getting in each other's way was, I think, more efficient, at least in an unfamiliar kitchen).
1 cup sugar
6 tablespoons butter
Sea salt
Put the sugar into a largish pan and set the heat on medium. You can add 1/4 cup of water if you are unsure of your ability to caramelize the sugar without burning it — if you need a little buffer between you and molten sugar. The water will evaporate so you still have to be vigilant, but it is helpful.
Gently stir a little until the sugar melts. Then stop stirring (or your sugar will granulate all over again and be a pain to fix). Let the sugar bubble away until it is fragrant with caramelly tones and turning a nut brown, like a copper penny or the crust of a pound cake. You know what caramel looks like. So just picture that and don't stop too soon or go too long. You can search online for more elaborate instructions with photos if you like. But I bet you can do it. If you burn the sugar, just toss it (carefully! It's hot!) and start again.
When you've reached the caramel stage, take the pan off the heat and add the butter, stirring it in well. Then drizzle it on your brownie batter. I had a bit left over (maybe less than 1/4 cup), to which I added some cream and put in the fridge for ice cream topping.
Bake the brownies as in the recipe, and let cool to room temperature. Cut the brownies into squares and put on your serving dish. Then sprinkle with nice big sea salt crystals.
Sarah says
That sounds delicious! I'll have to save that to try after our move. 🙂
Donna L. says
What a unique recipe! I always *hunt* for something salty after I eat a brownie or other treat…perhaps this is the sweet/salty treat for which I've been searching!
Thank you!
DeirdreLMLD says
They were SOOOO GOOD!
Pippajo says
Thank you, thank you, thank you! Salted caramel is my latest obsession and I've been wanting a good brownie recipe but have been too lazy/busy/distracted to find one. These will be happening this weekend!
Jennifer Gregory Miller says
Really sounds truly yummy! Your brownie recipe is just a tweak different than mine…I use 1/2 cup cocoa instead of 2/3…maybe I should add. But if you're using this recipe for the base, I KNOW I'll love this addition!
Betsy M says
Wow Leila, your recipe is exactly like my gluten free Brownies except mine calls for 1 cup of cocoa, no baking powder, 1/2 tsp xanthum gum or chia seed mixture and gluten free flours of course and I use oil to replace the butter because of allergies so of course no melting anything. I cannot wait to try them with the addition of the sea salt and the caramel {if I can get it to work with fake butter that is.} This is the one recipe that I KNOW people will love when I make them – gluten free or not. It will be fun to see the picture of the baby shower tomorrow.
_Leila says
Betsy, can you use coconut oil? I think that would be good. And coconut cream…
Betsy M says
Yes, we have done it that way with coconut oil and at times have made a butter cream frosting {If you can call it butter cream with no butter?} with the coconut oil- not melted, powdered sugar, a bit of salt and a bit of coconut cream if needed. That combination is wonderful! My littlest guy has, among other crazy allergies, allergies to chocolate and coconut. Maybe this is blessing as I now have plenty of suffering to offer up for the poor souls in purgatory. I am not making these very often any more – only to take to a neighbor or for a special occasion. Oh, another favorite is with a creamy frosting and crushed candy canes on top around Christmas time.
Nancy says
Thanks for sharing!
Mrs. B. says
I will only say this – I didn't have enough butter, so I took the kids and went out just for that… Now they're in the oven, and I can hardly wait!
Amie says
Thank you for sharing! I will be making these when our from-out-of-town company stays with us next week!
_Rosie says
I think these brownies are pretty perfect on their own, but I might need to try this variation as well! Why not? (What could possibly go wrong?)
Anne-Marie says
I have not yet found a scratch brownie recipe that I liked better than my favorite mix, so I will have to try this. The quantities of butter and eggs are promising!
Lisa G. says
Leila, when you say “mix”, do you mean with a spoon, a whisk, or hand mixer?
_Rosie says
No need to break out the mixer – a whisk is all you need (and will help prevent over-beating)! These days, I just use my big rubber spatula to further cut down on the dishes dirtied in the brownie-making process – you just have to make sure the eggs get mixed in thoroughly.
Angelina says
are your recipes printer friendly?
Kristen says
I thought I had found 'my' brownie recipe, but my husband says it's not 'his' brownie recipe (likes them, doesn't love them). So obviously, my quest is not over. I'm going to make these tomorrow (minus the caramel) for a birthday girl who wants brownies instead of cake, and we'll see if this is 'our' recipe. If so, I'll add “marital harmony with respect to brownies” to the list of good things that LMLD has done for me! 🙂
Lorna says
Oh this is so funny! I have a brownie recipe that's good, but your recipes are always superb, so maybe this one is better… No! It's *exactly* the same!!! How cool is that?! Yours look nicer, and they're baked for a shorter time, so I'll try taking mine out of the oven sooner next time (I don't think anyone will object to that!) The recipe came from the back of a Hershey's cocoa tin, but I haven't seen it there again in ages. The addition of caramel and sea salt sounds absolutely decadent and divine!
Kara and Zoe says
When you said that it made grown men cry, I thought you were referring to the proverbial grown man. Wow, I now know you actually mean it. These brownies have made it on to my last meal list… Zoe says (the 8 year old) that she liked the brownies but not the caramel. It was too salty and it tasted a bit like coffee. She likes the smell from the oven though. That just means more brownies and leftover caramel for Mommy!
Suzanne says
Oh my word! These are amazing. Just made them, and to be honest, I've never been a fan of brownies. But these, THESE, are the exception! I will keep this recipe and use it often. Thank you!
Amy says
Brownies were great! My caramel failed…twice. How do you keep it from getting rock hard?
_Leila says
Amy, here is a thorough tutorial: http://www.davidlebovitz.com/2008/01/how-to-make-…
You need to use the caramel before it cools down. Try making puddles in the brownie pan and then swirling it with your knife. It will get hard as you go, just scrape it off and do your best. In the oven it will mix with the batter and emerge as a chewy texture in the brownie.
Becca.Anne says
We just made them and they are DELICIOUS. Except, the caramel layer is pretty hard and didn't blend in with the brownies. maybe I put too much caramel on top?
Laura Jeanne says
Oh dear. Leila, I failed miserably at this recipe! I guess I just don't have the right touch. I made caramel three times. The first time, it burned before the top was even close to melted (I think my pot was too thin). Next time, I was paranoid about burning it and took it off too soon and it was still filled with big unmelted chunks. Both times I poured it into a bowl (bad idea) where it got ROCK hard, like hard candy. Now I have no idea how to wash the pots or the bowl! Can you please tell me how to clean this stuff off the pot once it hardens into cement?
The third time the caramel seemed okay, but although I worked quickly it was hardened before I was able to drizzle it over the brownies, so it was more like a few big globs. It quickly turned rock hard in that pot, too! I baked the brownies and then tried one as soon as they cooled a bit…they are delicious but the caramel is really hard, almost not possible to chew. It's more like strings of hard candies on top of the brownies. Please tell me what I did wrong? Why does my caramel always turn so hard? I'm very frustrated. The third time I made the caramel I was very careful to use a low heat and not burn it at all. I don't understand why it's gotten so hard.
Yours looks perfect and delicious!
_Leila says
Becca Anne and Laura Jeanne, maybe having two first names dooms you!! Just kidding.
Did you look at that tutorial I linked to in response to Amy?
Don't under or over cook the sugar. Try adding water.
Did you put in the butter?
You could also add cream as David Lebovitz does.
Pour it on the batter and pull a knife through it.
Clean the pan by adding lots of water and boiling slowly. It will all melt eventually!
Try the brownies with no caramel, really, they are good without 🙂
Laura Jeanne says
Thank you! Yes, I did put in the butter. Perhaps next time I'll try adding cream as well. I did try pulling a knife through it on the brownie batter but it was too hard by that point. I wonder if I undercooked it because I was afraid of burning it?
Thanks again! 🙂
_Leila says
Laura Jeanne, undercooking wouldn't leave it hard.
You might need to pour and knife at the same time.
Next time add 1/4 cup water to your sugar before it cooks and see if that helps.
Miss BB says
Yes. Absolutely, yes. I made these sans caramel for my first go-round, because if you're looking for THE brownie recipe, you must know the base first. My only alteration made it simpler–begin by melting the butter in you 9- or 10- inch cast-iron skillet, then just bake them in the pan. Simple, quick, mommy recipe. The ingredients gather and the oven heats while the butter melts. Deep dark chocolate perfection. Just what I needed after a very painful couple of days. Thank you. I will be memorizing this recipe, I'm sure.
anne says
Wow. I've been waiting to make these for time when 2 of my little could help. Despite the heat, today was the day (sans caramel). These are ridiculous. If I don't wrap them up and get them in the freezer I'm going to get ridiculously fat! Thank you for sharing your recipe! I'll be making them often!
bextree says
They look delicious, i love caramel and brownies. I will have to give them a go at the weekend! I made some super healthy gluten free brownies and they turned out really super tasty. Here is the link to the recipe http://bit.ly/12Zks7Y 🙂
Mary Eileen says
Well these were just excellent even gluten free. I've been meditating on them since you posted and did it this weekend for a family party. I did it exactly the same, just subbed GF flour/xanthan gum and they were perfect. I also have two names (though the second is my middle name) which probably doomed the caramel. It was a complete failure. Not to be beat too easily though, I did this fake recipe (sort of obviously cheating I think) from Martha Stewart for some average caramel to pour on top. http://www.marthastewart.com/326816/easy-caramel-….
It was pretty good and the brownies were awesome! Thank you!
Liz says
I just made these today (well, with a little tweaking as I didn't have quite enough cocoa powder) and they are soooo yummy!! Thank you so much for sharing! I generally only like brownie recipes with melted chocolate in them so I was hesitant, but…yum yum!
Shauna says
Made your brownies today (just the brownies, no caramel) as dessert with lunch I made for a newly-pregnant friend. They were fantastic! I've been on the search for a from-scratch brownie recipe that tastes as good as from-the-box, and these are the winner. I did use Hershey's special dark cocoa, as that was what I had. Thank you!
Pippajo says
Well, I finally made these, twice, and am afraid I've had problems with the recipe! I don't know if it's my oven (which I've only been cooking in for 5 months and, to be honest, I haven't done a whole lot of baking) or what but both times, the brownies simply would not firm up! They were like soup after 40 minutes! The first time, I thought perhaps it was because I ran out of cocoa powder and made up the difference with melted baking chocolate thus throwing off the ratio of dry to wet ingredients. The brownies took over 45 minutes to bake that night and by the time they firmed up enough to cut them, the edges were tough. Tonight, I had all of the ingredients I needed but they still took almost an hour!
Any ideas what I could be doing wrong? Could there be *gasp* a typo in the recipe? If not, I'm seriously concerned about my oven.
Brownies should NOT make you wait for an hour! NO FAIR!
_Rosie says
Pippajo, the recipe is correct! (You can tell because of the one in the picture 🙂
Here are some issues.
First, yes, no, you can't use chocolate, which is cocoa powder + fat. This recipe has a lot of fat already and adding more will not give you a good texture.
Second, are you using regular plain old baking cocoa of decent quality? Sometimes it's easy to be using hot cocoa cocoa and that contains a lot of sugar which the recipe already has. I use Hershey's or Ghirardelli, which is the best to be found in the supermarket.
Third, this recipe calls for a lasagna-sized pan — you aren't using a “brownie” (8 x 8″) pan by any chance? That will throw the time off.
Fourth, I made these at Deirdre's using her heavy, non-stick pan and the center didn't cook. I think a steel pan like that just doesn't conduct the heat well. My pan is an old-school aluminum lasagna pan and everything I cook in it comes out perfectly, evenly baked. I have also used an enameled pan and that works fine as well.
Next time you go to the store, grab an oven thermometer and hook it on the shelf that you would cook the brownies on. Many ovens are quite off.
That's all I've got. See what you think.
_Leila says
That was me, Leila, signed in as Rosie. 🙂