By Tracey
Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
concept from Two Peas and their Pod
Ingredients:
Salted Caramel Sauce
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 tablespoons light corn syrup
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon fleur de sel
- 1/4 cup sour cream
Cookie Bars
- 2 1/8 cups (10 1/2 oz) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 12 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
- 1 cup (7 oz) light brown sugar
- 1/2 cup (3 1/2 oz) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg yolk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 1/4 cups chocolate chips
- 6 tablespoons salted caramel sauce
- fleur de sel, for sprinkling
Directions:
To make the caramel: Add the sugar, corn syrup and water to a medium saucepan and stir gently to combine. Set the pan over medium-high heat and cook until the mixture registers 350 F on a candy thermometer (if you don’t have a thermometer cook until the mixture is amber in color). Turn off the heat under the pan and slowly add the cream (the caramel will bubble up quite a bit so be mindful) then the fleur de sel. Stir in the sour cream until the mixture is smooth. Let cool while you work on the brownies.
To make the cookie bars: Preheat oven to 325 F with a rack in the lower third. Line an 8×8-inch baking dish with aluminum foil, leaving an overhang on opposite sides to allow you to lift the bars out after baking. Spray the aluminum foil with nonstick cooking spray.
In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda and salt together. In a second bowl, combine the butter and both sugars, whisking until combined. Add the egg, egg yolk and vanilla and whisk to completely incorporate. Add the dry ingredients to the wet, and use a rubber spatula to fold the dry into the wet just until combined. (The batter will be quite thick.) Use the rubber spatula to fold in the chocolate chips.
Transfer half of the batter to the prepared pan, pressing it into an even layer in the bottom. Pour the caramel sauce over the cookie dough, leaving just a little space around the edges. Use a small cookie scoop to dollop the remaining cookie dough over the salted caramel. Press down gently with your fingertips to distribute. It’s fine if the caramel layer isn’t completely covered – it will spread to cover as it bakes. Sprinkle the top with fleur de sel. Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until the bars are golden brown and slightly firm to the touch. The bars will begin to pull away from the sides of the pan when they’re done.
Remove the pan to a wire rack. Let the bars cool completely before lifting them out of the pan and cutting into squares to serve.
