Go Back
Two salted caramel brown butter chocolate chip bars stacked on each other on white wax paper.

Salted Caramel Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Bars

Yield: 24 Bars (9X13-inch pan of bars)
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients

  • ¾ cup (170 g) salted butter
  • 1 cup (212 g) packed light or dark brown sugar
  • ½ cup (106 g) granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ¼ teaspoon table salt
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 ½ cups (213 g) all-purpose flour
  • 1 ½ cups (255 g) chocolate chips
  • 14-ounce bag (397 g) soft caramels, unwrapped (not caramel sauce)
  • 2-3 tablespoons milk or cream
  • ⅛ to ¼ teaspoon coarse sea salt, optional

Instructions 

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 9X13-inch pan (I use metal) with foil or parchment paper (to make cleanup easier with the caramel). Lightly grease the bottom and sides with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.
  • Brown the butter by cutting the butter into tablespoon-size pieces and placing in a skillet (preferably not nonstick so you can see the changing color easily - quick tutorial here). Cook over medium-low heat until the butter melts, begins to sizzle, and the butter solids on the bottom begin to turn a toasty brown, 3-4 minutes. Watch closely; the exact time will vary. Remove from the heat and immediately pour into a medium bowl. Refrigerate the butter for 10 minutes or so (not too long or it will solidify) until no longer hot.
  • Stir in the brown sugar, granulated sugar, baking soda and salt to the browned butter until evenly combined.
  • Add the eggs and vanilla and mix until well combined. Stir in the flour and chocolate chips until no dry streaks remain.
  • Take about 2/3 of the dough and dot in large pieces across the bottom of the prepared pan. Press into an even, thin layer.
  • Add the unwrapped caramels and cream to a microwave-safe bowl and cook for 1-minute increments at 50% power, stirring in between, until the mixture is melted and smooth (careful not to burn).
  • Spread the caramel, while still warm, over the cookie dough in the pan. Sprinkle with coarse sea salt, if desired. Pinch teaspoon-size pieces of remaining cookie dough and sprinkle across the caramel.
  • Bake for 20-27 minutes until the cookie dough is golden (the bars will be super gooey coming out of the oven - like molten lava because of the melted caramel; as long as the top and sides are golden, they'll set up as they cool). Let cool completely before cutting into squares.

Notes

Caramel: if you use homemade caramel, you'll want about 1 1/2 cups.