Bar #18: Gingerbread Caramel

These bars were so good.

Like seriously delish.

They look unassuming, right?  In fact, after I pulled them out of the oven, I thought I would need to cover them in frosting or something to jazz them up…they looked so plain.  But then I tasted one.  Oh my word.  So good!  And my people ate them up!  Honestly, they were a huge hit for my friends and kiddos.  Bonus…I think this totally passes for breakfast, right?  This bar with coffee and the start to my day is perfect!

Thank you to What’s Cooking, Love for the original recipe!

Shopping List

1 box of gingerbread cake mix (see below for an alternative)

1 stick of butter, softened

1 egg

1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk

1 cup of caramel pieces (sold by the chocolate chips or just chop up some larger pieces of caramel)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Grease (I use Pam) an 8×8 baking dish, set aside.

Mix the cake mix, butter and egg with an electric mixer until a dough forms.  (The dough will be thick and not like a typical cake batter.)  Spread 2/3 of the dough into the bottom of your prepared pan (I used my hands to spread it out since it was so thick).  

Sprinkle your caramel pieces over the top of your dough and then pour your sweetened condensed milk down over the top.  Take the remaining 1/3 of your gingerbread dough and crumble it down over the top.  Using a spatula sprayed with Pam (so it doesn’t stick), slightly press everything down.

Bake bars 25 to 30 minutes or until slightly brown and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.  Let bars cool completely before slicing.

Simple and yummy.  You will love these bars.

If your store doesn’t carry gingerbread cake mixes year around, just substitute one box of spice cake mix and add in 2 teaspoons of ground ginger.

And for a bonus today, I have Gingerbread Lemon Whoopie Pies up on Every Day Cheer!  It’s double your desserts today!

See you tomorrow for some Meal Planning Monday!