From Daryl:
Giveaway below! Please share with a friend.
As an author, I don't feel comfortable including a recipe in my culinary mysteries unless I've tested it. This one was a bunch of fun to make because I needed to try a couple of iterations. Poor me.
I love blondies. They're tasty "blond" brownies, relying on brown sugar instead of chocolate for the primary flavor. And in A SPRINKLING OF MURDER I wanted to give it a twist with caramel. Great idea, right?
Well, the first batch came out way too shallow. I made it in an 8 x 8 pan and, oops, they ended up about 1" deep. However, they turned out delicious! Truly delicious. More like confection. The gooey caramel and nuts gave them good structure, but they certainly weren't brownies. (By the way, if you'd like that recipe, write me an email and I'll share with you. PICTURE BELOW)
In the meantime, please enjoy this recipe shared in the book by Brady. If you haven't read the book, Brady Cash owns the Hideout Café, across the street from Open Your Imagination. Courtney goes into the newly renovated café one day with her friend Meaghan Brownie (who adores brownies, of course), and she's surprised to learn that Brady, an old high school friend, is the owner. Their friendship reignites.
The biggest trick to baking with caramel, my grandmother says, is to let the baked goods cool completely after baking. Wait, wait, wait. Two hours at minimum. Also make sure you don’t over bake these blondies. Dry blondies are no fun.
** I'm giving you both the regular and gluten-free versions.
Caramel Blondie
(Yield: 9 blondies)
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter (2 cubes), melted and cooled a tad
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup salted caramel sauce * see below, prepared ahead, kept warm
1/2 cup chopped nuts, pecans, or cashews
fleur de sel
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter or spray a 9 x 9-inch baking pan with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.
In a small bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add in egg, vanilla, salt, and flour mixture. Mix until well combined. Spread half of the mixture in the prepared baking pan and smooth.
Spread salted caramel onto the blondie batter using a tablespoon, leaving a bit of space around the edges. Top with the chopped nuts. Drop the remaining batter in spoonfuls over the caramel and spread with a spatula. Using a knife, swirl the blondie batter with the caramel. If desired, sprinkle with fleur de sel.
Bake 28-32 minutes until set in the middle and golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean. Do not over bake. Make sure you cool completely, almost 2 hours, before cutting into squares. If necessary, place in refrigerator for 30 minutes to help the caramel set.
Salted Caramel Sauce
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup water
6 tablespoons salted butter, cut into chunks
1/2 cup heavy cream, at room temperature
1 teaspoon coarse sea salt
In a 3-quart saucepan, add the sugar and water and cook at medium heat. Stir until combined. Do NOT stir again. If using a candy thermometer, it should read about 350 degrees. Remove thermometer.
Carefully add the butter and whisk until butter is melted. Remove the pan from heat and slowly pour in the cream, whisking all the time until the cream is incorporated. Whisk in the sea salt and set aside to cool.
Allow to cool about 5 minutes, then store in an airtight container until ready to use. Refrigerate.
Caramel Blondie
Gluten-free Version
(Yield: 9 blondies)
2 cups gluten-free flour
1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum
1 tablespoon whey powder
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter (2 cubes), melted and cooled a tad
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup salted caramel sauce * see below, prepared ahead, kept warm
1/2 cup chopped nuts, pecans, or cashews
fleur de sel
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter or spray a 9 x 9-inch baking pan with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.
In a small bowl, mix the gluten-free flour, xanthan gum, whey powder, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add in egg, vanilla, salt, and flour mixture. Mix until well combined. Spread half of the mixture in the prepared baking pan and smooth.
Spread salted caramel onto the blondie batter using a tablespoon, leaving a bit of space around the edges. Top with the chopped nuts. Drop the remaining batter in spoonfuls over the caramel and spread with a spatula. Using a knife, swirl the blondie batter with the caramel. If desired, sprinkle with fleur de sel.
Bake 28-32 minutes until set in the middle and golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean. Do not over bake. Make sure you cool completely, almost 2 hours, before cutting into squares. If necessary, place in refrigerator for 30 minutes to help the caramel set.
[Note: the salted caramel sauce, listed above, is gluten-free.]
HERE'S THE HALF RECIPE PHOTOGRAPH. I REALLY LOVED THESE, BUT SINCE I WAS GOING FOR A "BROWNIE" LIKE BLONDIE, I WENT WITH THE DOUBLED RECIPE IN THE BOOK.
GIVEAWAY
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