This favorite recipe originates with The Violet Bakery Cookbook. I’ve added orange blossom water, which is a good friend of caramel, and tahini, a good friend of most everything. Also, I take the melted butter all the way to brown butter for added flavor. The caramel shards are hard candy when they top the batter, but melt when they bake. Keep the bars in an airtight container, where they will be delicious for several days.
3/4cupsemi-sweet or milk chocolate chips, or pieces broken from bars
Instructions
Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 13x9x2-inch pan with butter. Line with a sheet of parchment that hangs over the long sides by a couple of inches, to form a sling.
To make the caramel shards, line a sheet pan with a Silpat or parchment paper. In a small heavy saucepan, sprinkle the sugar over the water and orange blossom water. No stirring during this process, or the caramel might crystalize. Over medium heat, dissolve the sugar. Turn up the heat just a touch and continue cooking until the mixture is bubbly and turns golden brown. Carefully pour the caramel out onto the prepared pan. Cool, then break the caramel into small-ish pieces, about the size of a nickel.
To make the batter, first melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium low heat. Increase the heat to medium and continue melting until the solids brown. Stay close, as this will happen quickly at a certain point. This will take 5-10 minutes total. Set aside to cool.
In a large bowl, whisk the eggs, vanilla, orange blossom water, tahini, and brown sugar until well-combined. Add the cooled butter and whisk to combine.
In another smaller bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt. Use a spoon to add the flour mixture to the batter, stirring just until combined. The stir in the chocolate chips.
Spread the batter in the prepared pan. Scatter about half of the caramel shards over the top, saving the rest in an airtight container for your next batch. Bake for 35 minutes, or until the brookies are golden but still soft.
Cool in the pan completely, then run a knife around the edges on the short ends where there is no parchment sling. Then use the hanging edges of the parchment to lift the brookies from the pan. Cut into bars or squares and serve.