CARAMEL CHOCOLATE BROWNIES | VEGAN NO-BAKE RECIPE

Decadent, fudgy, chocolaty, rich, and creamy Caramel Chocolate Brownies! This vegan, gluten-free no-bake dessert will literally melt in your mouth and you will have a hard time to stop eating it.

Ingredients

Brownie Layer:

• Wet ingredients:
• 3/4 cup dates (should be soft and moist)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract or vanilla bean
• Dry ingredients:
• 1/3 cup + 1 tbsp flax seeds
• 1/4 cup + 1 tbsp cocoa powder or raw cacao powder
• 4 tbsp powdered peanut butter or almond flour (ground almonds)
• Pinch of sea salt

Caramel Layer:

• 1/4 cup maple syrup (or agave syrup)
• 1/3 cup coconut milk (canned)
• 4 tbsp brown sugar (or coconut sugar)
• 2 heaped tbsp peanut butter (or sunflower seed butter)
• Pinch of sea salt

Chocolate Layer:

• 3/4 cup chocolate chips dairy-free (or dark chocolate, chopped)
• 2 tsp coconut oil

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

• I recommend using a kitchen scale for this recipe. You can easily switch between US and metric measurements underneath the ingredient list.

Brownie Layer:

• Grind the whole flax seeds in an electric coffee/spice grinder (or blender) until they turn into flour. You can also use 65 g of store-bought GROUND flax seeds but make sure it's fresh.
• Process all dry ingredients in a food processor, then add the dates and vanilla extract and process until the dough sticks together when you press it between your fingers. It might take some minutes until the dough comes together. If it's still too dry after a while then add a few dates in addition or a little bit of maple syrup or raw agave syrup. The dates should be very soft and juicy. If they are rather dry you should soak them in warm water first, until they are soft.
• Line a 6-inch square baking pan (double the recipe if you have an 8-inch or 9-inch baking pan) with parchment paper and leave about a 2-inch overhang on both sides. Grease the parchment paper with a little bit of oil.
• Transfer the brownie dough into the pan and press it down firmly. Set aside.

Caramel Layer:

• Put all ingredients for the caramel layer into a saucepan and bring to a boil. Stir with a whisk and let simmer on low heat for about 10-15 minutes until the mixture gets thicker.
• Pour the caramel layer onto the brownie layer, and put the pan into the freezer for about 30 minutes. Check the recipe notes below for a healthier version with dates!

Chocolate Layer:

• For the chocolate layer, melt dairy-free chocolate chips with coconut oil in a water bath (or double boiler).
• Once the chocolate is melted pour it on top of the caramel layer and put the pan back into the freezer for 5 minutes.
• Cut into mini bars (works best with a hot knife!).
• Store in the refrigerator. You can also freeze these caramel chocolate brownies in zip-lock bags! Enjoy!

source article>https://elavegan.com/caramel-chocolate-brownies/