Candy Bar Brownies

It's amazing to me how making food that you love can bring up old memories... Some of my favorite memories from childhood have a lot to do with the blackberries that we'd spend hours picking (getting new scratch scars by...) and then having them jammed or made into a cobbler.  Going to the Northwest anywhere near the time blackberries come on will nearly bring me to tears with the love of the smell of ripe blackberries.  Hands down.  Favorite.  

Later in life, while living in Idaho for 10 years, Bret Sr. and I had a series of favorite races that we'd make sure to participate in.  It would be something we'd plan on year after year (pending my being pregnant).  Then, along with the races, FOOD became part of the planning.  There were always items that would be expected to be either brought or cooked while at Bear Lake for the Bear Lake Classic Race each May.  With fingers crossed, my Bret Sr. would hope and confirm with Tami that there would be marshmallow covered brownies.  Salad and Greg's pasta the night before to carbo-load.  Raspberry milkshakes and cheeseburgers would be talked about in the months leading up to the race.  To round off our plans, we'd make sure to bring enough bacon to feed Jerry Man on Sunday and all have a big breakfast of pancakes before going home.

When we moved from Twin Falls to Pocatello 5 years ago... we not only left our home and first business... we left many friends and memories made while we were there.  It was a painful departure for all of us, and the ripples of leaving are still felt in our home and hearts.  

Pocatello was a new adventure and made us all create new friendships... and with them new memories.

One of my favorites to tell:

After living in Pocatello for more than 6 months, I first met Melissa at a combined ward Cub Scout meeting.  While awards were being presented to the Cub Scouts, a 3 year old Bret Annalese was running through the building with a little boy her age.  Corralling the two towards the back of the gym, I ended up standing next to the boy's mother.  Busy saying "hello!" and "what's your name?", I did not notice her little boy coming to my side.  However, I did notice when he grabbed my arm and LICKED  IT.  Shocked, I grabbed his arm and licked him right back.... :O)  He and I were instant friends.

And so were Melissa and I.  I had honestly been praying for months for Heavenly Father to put someone like her in my life.  (Over the years that have followed, I have been grateful to Him for her friendship and the friendships that were made between her children and mine.)  The following weeks and months morphed into race training together...  BIG PLANS!  The Bear Lake Classic and a sprint triathlon that first summer we knew each other.  

The new friendship brought with it new recipes.  :O)  Melissa brought Candy Bar Brownies to the first race we did together... and has brought them to EVERY race since.  These are a real motivation to finish fast and, since we've raced, not feel too guilty about the calories that make them so wonderful.  :O)

So calories... OH what a recipe of guilty calories this one is...  I haven't even logged this one into my Calorie Count Food Log because I  DON'T  want to know what the calorie content is!  

Seriously... These have been renamed into "Candy Bar Brownies" for a reason.  The original name didn't sound calorie heavy enough.  So take (or leave) the following advise when trying this one out:

MAKE  THESE  ONLY  IF  YOU   PLAN  TO  SHARE  1/2  OF  THEM  AWAY ...

You will wake up the morning after making these lovely things and wonder to yourself... 

"Does this count as a breakfast food since there's oatmeal in it?"  

Sorry.  The answer is no.  These are not on the "alternative, i.e.: SNEAKY" oatmeal-for-breakfast list.  Though, to throw in a confession on this particular post, that doesn't mean that I don't eat these for breakfast if they are found in my house.  :O)  AND... I'm pretty sure Melissa does too.  

1  1/2 cups flour

1  1/2 cups old fashioned oats

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1  1/2 cups brown sugar

1 cup PLUS 2 Tablespoons butter, melted

1  (14 ounce) bag unwrapped caramels (NO Caramel PELLETS)

1/2 cup heavy whipping cream 

1 cup milk chocolate chips and

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine the first 6 ingredients in a large bowl to make a crumble mixture.  

Sprinkle a little more than half of the crumble mixture into the bottom of a 9X13 baking pan. 

Bake at 350 for 15 minutes.

WHILE  THE  FIRST  LAYER  IS  BAKING:

Unwrap caramels and melt in a medium saucepan with whipping cream.  

Stir mixture constantly with a heat-tolerant scraper.  This mixture will easily scorch on the bottom if not watched.

Remove baking pan with the first layer.

Pour melted caramel and whipping cream on top.

Sprinkle chocolate chips evenly over caramel.

Sprinkle remaining crumble mixture over chocolate chips.  Press gently… careful not to touch the caramel or edge of the baking pan.  

Bake for 15 minutes.  The edges will be bubbling caramel and be just barely golden brown.  DON’T OVER BAKE… easy to do… But remember the bottom layer has already been baking and it will continue to bake a little as you let it cool down.

Plan ahead.  These need a few hours to cool before you cut and plate them.

Makes at least 2 dozen, and at least 3 total if you cut them smaller.

Candy Bar Brownies - Optional Recipe Substitutes

Instead of: Try:

1 cup milk chocolate chips and 2 cups milk chocolate chips

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

OR

1 cup milk chocolate chips and 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Melted Butter                                                      1 cup PLUS 2 Tablespoons unrefined 

                                                                           coconut oil, melted

Heavy Whipping Cream                                   1/3 cup butter, melted

                                       3/4 cup milk, whole (preferred) or 2%
                                                                                 (This makes 1 cup of Heavy Whipping 
                                                                                 Cream Substitute.)

The last few years I have noticed a bag of "caramels" 

in the grocery store baking isle that actually look like air-soft gun pellets.  

Please don't feel like this is an easy answer to skipping the task of

 unwrapping REAL caramels...  Don't give into the temptation!  

NO EASY BUTTON HERE!  

Just bribe a child or handsome husband with an extra 

Candy Bar Brownie and have them to do it for you.  ;0)

This crumble mixture 

has been tweaked inside out...  

find your favorite!  

If you love coconut, jump right 

into this with unrefined coconut oil.  

Very "Almond Joy".

If you're not a fan... Stick to butter.

(LOVE MY PUN!)  :0)

I've even tried 1/2 and 1/2 

and love the simple HINT of coconut.

Remember... 

Barely golden brown...

The bottom layer has already 

been baking long before 

you've added to it...

Let cool a few hours before cutting.  

But too long with turn these 

into an arm workout...  

There.  You've been warned.

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