Snack: Salted Caramel Brownies

Recipe by Candace Braun Davison Maldon sea salt—or any coarse, flaky salt—is crucial for getting that light hit of salt without making the whole dessert taste salty.

Ingredients

1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter
1/2 c. cocoa powder
1 1/2 c. sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla extract
3/4 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt

Instructions

Make the Brownies: Preheat the oven to 350 °F, and grease the bottom and sides of a 9-inch square baking pan with butter or cooking spray.
Melt the butter over low heat in a medium saucepan. As soon as it's melted, remove from heat and let cool for 3-4 minutes. Stir in the cocoa powder and sugar until combined. Gradually mix in the eggs and vanilla extract, until the batter is glossy.
Combine the flour and salt, then slowly add them to the brownie batter, stirring just enough to combine. Pour half of the brownie batter into the 9-inch by 9-inch pan.
Make the Salted Caramel Sauce: Pour the sugar into a saucepan over medium heat, stirring almost nonstop. As the sugar melts, it will turn a clumpy, reddish-brown color. Keep stirring until the sugar has melted. As soon as it has, add in the butter and keep stirring until it's fully melted and combined. (Careful: The mixture will bubble up a lot when the butter is added.)
Slowly pour in the heavy cream, stirring continuously. Bring the mixture to a boil for about a minute or two. It will rise in the pan; just keep stirring, and once your time is up, remove it from the heat to cool for about 5 minutes.
Pour 2/3s of the caramel sauce onto the brownie mixture that's already in the pan, tilting the pan for the batter is coated in an even layer. Sprinkle it with half of the sea salt. Top the mixture with the remaining brownie batter.
Bake for about 28-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the brownies pulls up caramel sauce and some brownie crumbs, but not chocolate goo.
Top with remaining caramel sauce and sea salt before serving.