Caramel Mocha Brownies

I was overcome by a desire to bake something last Sunday afternoon. After pushing around various food items in my pantry for several minutes, I decided that I had all the ingredients for brownies. Then, because I love coffee, I decided to make them mocha brownies. Then I decided to throw in some caramel. Usually, my baking projects are well thought-out far ahead of time. These brownies...not so much.

 I quickly whipped up some brownie batter. I mostly followed a recipe I found on Annie's Eats, but threw in some finely ground coffee. Then, I started the caramel sauce.

I'm really bad at making caramel. Last time I tried, I had to throw out two batches because they crystallized beyond the point where I could feasibly save them. This time I did better - I only had to throw out one batch. I have wasted a lot of perfectly delicious sugar trying to make caramel, and at this point, I'm going to go ahead and declare caramel my baking nemesis.

If you'd like to avoid the hassle of making caramel yourself, I've provided an alternative in the recipe below.

I intended to let these brownies cool before cutting and serving them. My husband and sister, however, would not let me do that. They insisted on digging into them while they were still super gooey and the caramel was bubbling all over the place.

These brownies were really delicious. The caramel and chocolate made them super moist and the coffee deepened the chocolate flavor. They were also pretty easy to prepare (well, minus my caramel troubles). Basically, they were a perfect spontaneous baking project!

Caramel Mocha Brownies
Adapted from the Caramel Brownies recipe at Annie's Eats.  This recipe makes about twice as much caramel as you'll need for the brownies themselves - the rest should be drizzled over each brownie piece!

Ingredients for the Caramel*
2 cups sugar
¾ cups (1½ sticks) unsalted butter
1 cup heavy whipping cream
*If you'd like to skip making your own caramel, just use 28 ounces caramel candies and ⅔ cup whipping cream. Combine the two in a saucepan and heat until the caramels are melted and the mixture is smooth.

Ingredients for the Brownies
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
12 ounces chocolate, coarsely chopped
1¼ cups all-purpose flour
½ tsp. salt
2 tablespoons finely ground coffee
1½ cups sugar
4 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Method

1. Make the caramel first (I didn't do this and the caramel didn't quite have enough time to cool). In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, heat the sugar over medium-high heat.
2. Whisk the sugar with a whisk or a wooden spoon until it starts to boil. From this point on, only swirl the pan to mix the caramel.
3. Once the sugar is completely melted and is a dark amber color, add the butter and mix until the butter has melted. When the butter is added, the caramel will bubble a lot - that's ok.
4. Remove the caramel from the heat and immediately add the whipping cream, mixing until the mixture is smooth. Once again, the whipping cream will cause the caramel to bubble.
5. Pour the caramel into a jar and allow it to cool for about an hour.
6. Now, to make the brownies, preheat your oven to 350° F. Line a 9"x13" baking pan with aluminum foil. Grease the aluminum foil with oil or butter.
7. Melt the butter and chocolate over a double-broiler. Once it's smooth, set aside to cool for a couple minutes.
8. Sift together the flour, salt, and coffee in a small bowl.
9. Whisk together the sugar, eggs, and vanilla in a large bowl. Continue to whisk while you add the butter/sugar mixture.
10. Finally, add the dry ingredients and whisk the mixture until smooth.
11. Spread half of the mixture into the aluminum-lined pan. Bake for 20 minutes.
12. Remove the pan from the oven and spread half of the cooled caramel over the baked brownies. Now, add the rest of the uncooked brownie batter, and spread evenly over the pan. If you'd like, you can swirl the caramel into the brownie batter a bit (I did this), or keep them as separate as possible.
13. Bake for 20 more minutes. Allow to cool completely (if you can!). Slice into squares and serve with the extra caramel.