When a colleague moves on to greener pastures, you spend a lot of time questioning the trajectory of yours and what to make to properly send them off with delicious memories of the time you have spent together.You start pondering if you have made the right decisions along the way and if you made enough treats to boost office morale . . . which, in turn, may also assist in swaying opinions in your favor. This colleague has set the bar of accomplishment high, and do you want to meet it or forge your own path? Lots of things to noodle over, but most importantly . . . what to make to show your appreciation and gratitude for the opportunities she has given you to shine?
Well, in this case, salted caramel brownie bites and chocolate peanut butter brownie bites. Little bites of heaven and seriously addictive. I adapted the caramel from caramel apple cupcake post #60 on Chockylit’s cupcakeblog.com and the dark chocolate brownies from the salted caramel brownie recipe from ThePioneerWoman.com blog.
Chewy, Dark Chocolate Brownie Bites
6 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1 1/2 cups sugar (I used sucanat)
1 1/2 stick butter, cubed
3 eggs, beaten
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
Preheat oven to 325°F. Grease a 9” X 13” pan, and set aside.
In a double boiler over medium heat, melt together the chocolate and cubed butter. Once evenly mixed, add sugar. The final batter will be grainy, and it’s ok. Beat the eggs together separately, and temper the chocolate mix with a little egg, whisking quickly to incorporate.
Once tempered, slowly pour the rest of the beaten eggs into the chocolate, continuously whisking. You don’t want scrambled eggs on top of the brownie batter. Mix in the flour until completely incorporated and pour into prepped pan.
Bake 25-30 minutes. Cool completely. Cut the thin brownie into 48 bite-sized squares. Place the squares on waxed mini cupcake/candy wrappers.
Now, make the caramel.
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, cut up
1 cup brown sugar, packed
6 ounces sweetened, condensed milk
1/2 light corn syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 tablespoon heavy cream
In a thick-bottomed pan over medium high heat, bring the butter, brown sugar, condensed milk, salt, and corn syrup to a boil. When everything is evenly incorporated, whisk like the wind as you add the vanilla and cream.
Once the caramel temp reaches 248°F, about 20 minutes, remove from heat. Let it rest for 5 minutes, and spoon over the cooled brownies. Sprinkle coarse sea salt over the caramel to garnish. Chill in fridge to set caramel.
Stereotype Rebel 
