Salted Caramel Stuffed Brownies

Fudgy Chocolate Brownies With A Layer Of Soft Salted Caramel Baked Right Through The Center

Prep Time 35

Cook Time 35

Total Time 1 10

Course Dessert

Servings 9 or 16

Add the granulated sugar to a medium, heavy-bottomed saucepan in an even layer over medium heat. Let it sit and melt without stirring too much at first, just an occasional swirl of the pan. It'll go from white, to clumpy, to clear, to a deep amber. You want it the color of a copper penny. Keep a close eye on it once it starts to color, it can go from perfect to burnt in under a minute
The moment it hits that deep amber, pull it off the heat and immediately whisk in the salted butter. It's going to bubble up hard, that's completely normal, just keep whisking until it's fully melted in (the butter will not fully incorporate, it will leave a greasy film, that's normal!)
If you want more control over the salt in your salted caramel, you can use unsalted butter, then add fine sea salt to taste
Slowly stream in the cream while whisking constantly. It will bubble up again, even more than the butter did. Once it's all in, whisk until smooth and glossy. you might need a bit of elbow grease, but that's normal as well!
Whisk in the vanilla. Pour the caramel into a heatproof bowl and let it cool at room temperature while we work on our batter

Preheat your oven to 350°F. Line an 8-inch square pan with parchment paper, leaving enough of an overhang on two sides to lift the brownies out later
In a medium saucepan, combine the chocolate chips and unsalted butter and melt together over medium-low heat, stirring frequently with a silicone spatula
Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix together the cocoa powder, espresso powder, and cinnamon if using
Once the chocolate and butter have fully melted, turn off the heat and immediately whisk in the cocoa mixture until smooth
In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl with a hand mixer, beat the eggs, granulated sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla on medium speed until light, fluffy, and slightly thickened, about 4 minutes. You'll know it's ready when you can rub a bit of the mixture between two fingers and barely feel any sugar granules left
On low speed, slowly mix the melted chocolate mixture into the egg mixture, scraping down the bowl as needed so everything is fully combined
In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, powdered milk if using, and salt. Add this to the wet ingredients on low speed (or using a rubber spatula) and mix just until no streaks of flour remain. Don't overmix

Pour exactly half of the brownie batter into the lined pan and spread it into an even layer with a rubber spatula
Drop spoonfuls of the caramel evenly over the batter, Take it all the way out to the edges if you want pools of caramel pulling up to the surface as they bake, or leave about a 1/2-inch border bare around all four edges if you'd rather keep it fully enclosed in the center. Gently spread the caramel into a single layer with the back of a spoon, trying not to disturb the batter underneath too much
Pour the remaining brownie batter over the caramel layer and spread it carefully to cover everything completely, smoothing the top with an offset spatula or the back of a spoon
Bake for 30 to 35 minutes. The edges should be set and the center will still have a slight jiggle when you gently shake the pan. You may see a little caramel bubbling up at the very edges, thats normal even if you left a little boarder

Remove the pan from the oven and let the brownies cool completely in the pan, about 2 hours. This is a longer cool than the hour that I normally recommend for a normal batch of brownies, but the caramel center needs the time to firm back up. If you're impatient like me, finish the cool with 30 minutes in the fridge
Once fully cooled, use the parchment overhang to lift the brownies out of the pan and cut into 9 large squares or sixteen small squares. Finish with a sprinkle of flaky sea salt over the top before serving if you'd like
And you're done !