Gooey Chocolate–Salted Caramel Pretzel Brownies
- Level: Easy
- Yield: 20 brownies
-
- Nutritional Analysis
- Per Serving
- Serving Size
- 1 of 20 servings
- Calories
- 499
- Total Fat
- 27
- Saturated Fat
- 4
- Carbohydrates
- 60
- Dietary Fiber
- 1
- Sugar
- 31
- Protein
- 6
- Cholesterol
- 54
- Sodium
- 380
- Total: 2 hr 15 min
- Active: 25 min
Ingredients
For the Brownies:
Cooking spray
2 18.3-ounce boxes fudge brownie mix
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 1/3 cups vegetable oil
5 large eggs, beaten
1/2 cup water
1 1/2 cups crushed pretzel slims (about 3 cups whole slims), plus 20 whole slims for topping
For the Caramel:
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons water
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces
2 tablespoons heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Coarse salt, for sprinkling
Whipped cream, for serving
Directions
- Make the brownies: Preheat the oven to 325˚ F. Spray a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with cooking spray.
- Whisk together the brownie mix and cayenne in a large bowl. Stir in the vegetable oil, beaten eggs and water until just combined; do not overmix. Stir in the crushed pretzels. Spread the batter in the baking dish and top with the whole pretzels in a 4-by-5 grid. Bake until the brownies are puffed and a tester inserted 2 inches from the edge comes out with a few crumbs, 55 minutes to 1 hour. Let cool on a rack.
- Make the caramel: Put the sugar in a small saucepan, drizzle with the water and set over medium heat. Cook, without stirring, until the sugar melts, 2 to 3 minutes. Continue to cook, swirling the pan occasionally so the edges don’t burn, until the sugar syrup is a dark amber, about 8 more minutes.
- Whisk the butter into the caramel, then whisk in the heavy cream. Return to a simmer just to combine, then remove from the heat. Whisk in the vanilla. Pour the caramel into a glass measuring cup and let cool until thick enough to drizzle, 3 to 4 minutes.
- Drizzle the caramel over the brownies and sprinkle lightly with coarse salt. Let cool completely in the baking dish before cutting into squares, each with a whole pretzel on top. Serve with whipped cream.