You guys, I have a serious affection for salted caramel & chocolate things. It all started a couple years ago when our friends, Marianne and Justin, enlightened us about Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate (with Toffee) from Starbucks. Since then, it’s been a highlight of the warm beverage months every year when that sweet and savory concoction hits the cups once more, but the sad sad moment of disappointment when we’ve been told they’re out of the special salt they use at the end of each season. I’ve also fallen in love with these salted caramel chocolate candies from Trader Joe’s. Alas, the closest of their stores is one hour away from us, so I have to ration my sweet tooth armory. I started getting low on my treats from Trader Joe’s recently and I decided that I just had to combat that. These salted caramel chocolate chip bars are just divine. They are one of my new favorite treats. And since I was enjoying them just a liiiiiiiiiiitttttttttttlllllllllllleeeeeeee too much (seriously…I couldn’t stop thinking about them and sneaking into the kitchen just to cut another sliver off…which ended up turning into several servings worth a few times too many), I jumped at the opportunity to bless someone going through a really difficult time with these morsels of goodness. I hope you’ll take that opportunity too. It’s a great way to reach beyond your reach.
Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Bars
Reach For:
2 1/8 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
12 TBSP butter, melted and cooled to room temperature
1 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 egg yolk
2 tsp vanilla extract
12 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup caramel sauce
sea salt or kosher salt for sprinkling
Directions:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease an 8×8 inch baking dish. In a bowl, mix flour, baking soda, and salt. In a mixer, blend melted butter, brown sugar, and white sugar until well combined. Add egg, egg yolk, and vanilla, beating until smooth. Slowly add mixture from the other bowl, combining well. Fold in chocolate chips. Mash half of the mixture into baking dish. Meanwhile, heat caramel sauce for about 20 seconds give or take and pour over the mixture in the baking dish. Sprinkle with a small amount of sea or kosher salt. Press the rest of the dough on top of this. Bake for 25-30 minutes until edges begin to pull away from the dish. Let cool completely. Parts may seem a little doughy still, but this only adds to the deliciousness. After completely cooled, cut into about 20 pieces small pieces and enjoy!
Yields: 20 small, rich servings
Recipe Source: Greens N’ Chocolate
View Recipe Card | Print Friendly Version
This week we’re partying with:
Cheerios & Lattes , Not Just a House Wife , Weekend Potluck, Say Not Sweet Anne , Uncommon Designs , Jam Hands , This Gal Cooks