Chocolate Pretzel Tarts with Caramel

Here's the full title for this recipe: Chocolate Brownie Tarts with Peanut Butter Pretzel Crust and Peanut Butter Caramel On Top.

A bit of a mouthful, huh?  But tell me it doesn't sound delicious.

This recipe was born when my mom accidentally bought too many pretzels.  I'm not quite sure what she was thinking, but she came home from the grocery store with two huge bags.  I don't want or need that many pretzels, so recipe ideas immediately began flying through my head.

What goes well with pretzels?  Peanut butter, chocolate, peanut butter and chocolate, yogurt, more chocolate... the list goes on and on.  In the end, I decided to combine a whole bunch of delicious pretzel combinations into one amazing recipe.  And hence, these tarts were born.

Please don't be intimidated by this recipe.  Please, please, please.  I promise you, it's really not that hard.  In fact, despite the three different parts to it, there are only ten different ingredients.  That's really not too much.  Aaannd, none of the ingredients are really outlandish or anything.  The weirdest it's gonna get is  special dark cocoa power, and even that can be subbed in for another high quality cocoa of your choice.

So really, no chickening out and convincing yourself this recipe is too much work.  It's not!  It'll all be worth it once you take the first bite....

Chocolate Pretzel Tarts with Caramel
Crust:

• 60 g (about three cups, un-crushed) pretzels
• 3/4 cup milk
• 2 tbsp peanut butter (or another but butter of your choice)

Brownie Filling:

• 2 cups rolled oats
• 1/2 cup special dark cocoa powder (or another good quality cocoa powder)
• 1/2 cup applesauce
• 1/3 cup honey
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 2 tsp vanilla

Caramel:

• 2 tbsp honey
• 1 tbsp peanut butter
• 1/3 cup milk

To make crust:

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Grease a muffin tin or line with 12 silicone cupcake liners.
2. Place pretzels in the bowl of a food processor.  Process until the pretzels have turned into fine crumbs.  
3. Add milk and nut butter and blend again until completely mixed.
4. Take crust mixture and press into prepared pan.  You should have enough to make 12 "cupcakes"
5. Set aside.

To make filling:

1. Quickly rinse and dry bowl of food processor.
2. Add all ingredients of filling to the bowl of food processor.  Process until completely combined, with the oats completely broken down and the batter smooth.
3. Scoop about 1/4 cup of batter into each prepared crust so that the crust is full.
4. Place pan in preheated oven for 18-20 minutes until filling is firm and crust has browned.
5. Remove from oven and let cool.

To make caramel:

1. While tarts cook, make caramel.  In a small saucepan, whisk together honey and peanut butter.  Cook in high until mixture has reduced by about half.
2. Once reduced, remove from heat and add milk.  
3. Turn heat to low and continue to mix until mixture has thickened into a caramel.  Remove from heat and let cool.
4. Once cool, spread onto cooked starts.
5. Store in fridge until serving time.  Recipe makes 1 dozen tarts.

Make.  These.  Now!!

Chocolate Caramel Dip

This Dip.  Just.  This Dip.

I'm at a bit of a loss for words.

It's really good, guys.  Really good.

This is the kind of dip one eats by the spoonful.  You could dip in fruit or cookies, but when you have a healthy chocolate caramel dip sitting in fruit of you, I doubt you'll worry about that.  More likely, you'll go in with a spoon.

I know I did.  Enjoy!

Chocolate Caramel Dip

• 2 tbsp peanut butter
• 2 tbsp maple syrup
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1-2 tbsp special dark cocoa powder

In a small saucepan, mix together peanut butter and maple syrup.  Heat on medium, stirring constantly, until mixture has reduced by half.  Lower heat and add milk.  Continue to stir until mixture thickens to the consistency of a sauce.  Remove from heat and let cool.  Once cool, transfer to a container and add cocoa powder.  Mix until completely incorporated.  Serve with fruit, crackers, or eat it by the spoonful.

Chocolate Caramel Cake Bites

I've always loved caramel.

Twix bars, caramel apples, caramel dip, caramel sauce.  Pretty much everything containing caramel is guaranteed to be gobbled up in seconds.

Since I made my diet a bit healthier, my caramel consumption has reduced significantly.  There's still the occasional treat, of course, but caramel is far from a staple in my house.

That is, it wasn't until I stumbled into this recipe for Crazy Caramel Sauce.  It's from the blog The Fit Foodies, and guys, it really is crazy.  The recipe replaces butter with nut butter, sugar with maple syrup, and cream with milk for a resulting caramel that tastes, dare I say it, even better than an original caramel sauce!

Click that link and try it!

Anyway, after finally discovering a healthy caramel sauce (that's not made with dates!), I immediatly started brainstorming recipes to use it with.  I had some leftover Chocolate Avocado Frosting in the fridge and both recipes together spurred the creation of these bad boys:

Chocolate Caramel Cake Bites!  They taste even better than they sound.

Chocolate Caramel Cake Bites
Caramel (recipe slightly modified from this recipe):

• 1 tbsp peanut butter
• 2 tbsp maple syrup
• 1/3 cup milk

Cake:

• 1/2 cup oat flour
• 2 tbsp honey
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 tsp vanilla

Frosting:

• One batch Chocolate Avocado Frosting

To Make Caramel:

In a small saucepan (non-stick if possible), whisk together peanut butter and maple syrup until combined. Heat on high, stirring constantly, until mixture has thickened and reduced to about half it's original volume. Lower to low heat and add milk.  Stir constantly until mixture has thickened to a caramel like consistency. Let cool and then transfer to a small container.  Set aside for now.

To Make Cake:

Preheat oven to 350F.  Grease a loaf pan.  Mix together dry ingredients in a medium to large bowl.  Add milk and vanilla and mix until a smooth batter forms.  Pour into loaf pan and spread into an even layer.  Bake in preheated oven for 8-12 minutes, until firm and a toothpick comes out clean.  Let cool.  Once cooled, spread the caramel you just made into a layer on top.  Spread the pre-made Chocolate Avocado Frosting on top of that.  Chill in fridge for at least an hour before slicing into small squares.  Store in an airtight container in the fridge.

Revisited Recipe of the Day:

Date Caramel + Chocolate Caramel Cookies

Caramel Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies

You read that right.  Caramel stuffed.

Remember that Date Caramel from way back when?  Well today it's making another appearance. This time, stuffed into the middle of a chocolate chip cookie.

Mmmmmm...

So here's the scoop.  These cookies arent quite your classic ones. Despite the fact that they're stuffed with a date "caramel", they're also a bit in the cakey side of things.  But, don't let it scare you.  I normally don't like cakey cookies, but thought these were delicious.  I suppose it's something about the sweet middle and humongous size that really draws you in.

Bigger is always better.

Oh, yeah, and these are also six year old approved.  How many healthy cookies do you know that can pull that off?  I gave one to my younger sisters friend, and she gobbled it up, even coming back for another.  Score!

My opinion on the matter:  If a picky little kid likes them, you're practically guatenteed to!  Make them!

Caramel Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies

• 3/4 cup spelt flour
• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 2 tbsp honey
• 2 tbsp turbinado sugar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 2 egg whites
• 1 tbsp oil
• 3 tbsp water or milk
• 1/3 cup chocolate chips
• around 2 tbsp Date Caramel

In a large bowl, mix together first 5 ingredients.  In another bowl, whisk together honey, sugar, vanilla, egg whites, oil, and liquid of choice.  Add wet ingredients to try and mix well until a cookie dough forms.  Fold in chocolate chips.  Scoop dough into a plastic bag and chill overnight, or for at least 3 hours.  The next day, preheat oven to 350F and line a baking sheet with a no stick mat or parchment paper.  Remove dough from bag.

Take about 1 tsp of dough and flatten it into a circle shape.

Drop about 1/4 tsp of caramel in the middle of the cookie dough circle

Place another flattened piece of cookie dough on top.

Smooth it out around the edges, so that it looks like the picture below.

Repeat until all dough has been used, and place each circle on the lined baking sheet.

Bake in preheated oven for 7 minutes.  Let cookies cool a couple minutes on baking sheet before tranferring to a cooling rack.  Recipe makes 10 big cookies.

Revisited Recipe of the Day:

Cookie Dough Hearts

Date "Caramel" + A Cookie recipe to get you started

So what's up with this whole date caramel thing, anyway?

I mean, what the heck?  Can a fruit really taste like caramel?  Butter, sugar, fat filled caramel?  Is it even possible?

Actually, yes, it sorta is.

I'll admit I was doubtful at first, but when my Dad (of all people) mentioned that he thought dates tasted like caramel I began to believe it just might work.  So I decided to take a chance and make it.

The verdict?  It doesn't taste exactly like caramel, but it tastes pretty darn good none the less.  I think it's just about the best "healthy" caramel sub you're gonna find.

The version I made is more of a thin caramel, perfect for drizzling, adding to coffee, or adding to yogurt.  Oh, yeah, and it also makes pretty good cookies.  More on that coming.  Read on.

Date "Caramel"

• 10 dates, pitted
• 2/3 cup + 3 tbsp water
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Place dates in food processor.  Process until they are entirely broken up and form a thick ball.  Add in water and vanilla and process again until completely smooth.  Transfer to a container and store in fridge.  Caramel will keep for a couple weeks in fridge.

Yupp, you read that correctly.  Three ingredients and five minutes is all you need to make a delicious "caramel".  It's the stuff of dreams.  And ya know what else is?

Caramel Cookies.  Ones that look and taste just like their naughty cousins, but aren't nearly as bad.  Ain't life great?

Eat up!

Chocolate Caramel Cookies
(makes 16 cookies)

• 2/3 cup spelt flour
• 1/4 cup rolled oats
• pinch salt
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 2 tbsp extra dark cocoa powder
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 1 tbsp yogurt (soy, greek, almond, etc)
• 5 tbsp milk
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 2 tbsp maple syrup
• 1-2 tbsp date caramel (from above)

Preheat oven to 375F.  In a bowl, whisk together dry ingredients.  Add in wet and mix until a thick dough forms.  Form dough into balls on a greased or lined baking sheet.  Flatten slightly.  Bake for 5 minutes.  Then remove cookies from oven and use your thumb to press down on the middle of the cookie while it's still hot. Let cookies cool completely.  Add a little dollop of caramel to the center of cookies.  It's best to store them in the fridge.

Revisited Recipe of the Day:

Carrot Cake Cookie Bites