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I have a confession. I started this week in a bit of a fog, with very little inspiration on what to bake. Both boys went back to school this week and it has been a decision that has come with its fair share of uncertainty. As the week went on, we settled back into a rhythm and by Wednesday I was excited to get my bake on.
This one was a solo bake for me while the boys were at school as handling the caramel can be tricky with very little ones around. What would work well if you wanted to make this recipe on the weekend would be to make the caramel in advance and simply heat it up on the hob or in the microwave in order to get it to a pouring consistency. The nougat does need to be made and spread at the same time but is not as liable to burn as the caramel.
I made a small amount of brownie mix as you don't want this to be too thick. My recipe is for a 7 inch x 11 inch tin. Don't be put off by the number of steps involved; each one is fairly simple so this still quite a straightforward bake.
What you will need:
For the brownie layer (scale up if you want a thicker layer or have a larger tin)
120g unsalted butter
15ml vegetable oil
130g white sugar
100g light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
a pinch of salt
65g plain flour
50g cocoa powder
100g chocolate
For the caramel layer:
200g granulated sugar
100g of butter in cubes
100ml double cream
For the nougat layer
30g butter
2 tbsp peanut butter
1 tbsp icing sugar
2 cups of marshmallows / marshmallow fluff
peanuts to sprinkle on top (I used salted ones)
For the top:
200g chocolate
pinch of salt
Method:
Preheat your oven to 175degrees c and line your brownie tray with baking parchment.
Melt your butter and pour into a bowl with your oil, white caster sugar and brown sugar. Mix well until fluffy.
Add your eggs, ensuring they are at room temperature. Mix each egg when you add it to the bowl. Add Vanilla extract and mix on high speed until your mix has turned paler and is fluffy.
Add salt, plain flour and cocoa and fold. Chop your chocolate into small pieces and fold this in.
Spread into your brownie tray and bake for 20 minutes or until the top has a papery crust and a toothpick comes out slightly wet but not totally covered in mix (it will continue to bake in tray and you also want to retain a fudgy centre).
Once this is baked, leave to cool. Remove from tray as soon as your brownie layer is cool and sturdy enough to handle. Leave on a rack to cool completely.
Even though the nougat layer goes on top of the brownie layer, we can make the caramel next as this and the brownie layer both need to cool before we can assemble.
A large saucepan should be used for this as it requires quite vigorous stirring and the caramel could burn if it spills out. Stir the sugar on a medium until it melts into a smooth liquid. This will take approximately 5 minutes. Ignore the clumps, they will soon melt into the rest of the sauce.
When the sugar has fully melted, remove your pan from the heat and add the butter in small cubes. Stir vigorously, being sure to incorporate both butter and sugar together. Once these have come together and are a dark golden colour, you can slowly add the cream. Return to a low heat and stir until you reach the desired thickness. Leave to cool, alongside your brownie layer which should be out of the oven by now.
Now it is time to make your Peanut butter Nougat. Melt the butter and Peanut butter in a pan, add icing sugar and stir until mixed. Add the marshmallows and stir well until combined. Add this immediately to your brownie layer and smooth out. Before this can set, sprinkle your peanuts on top. Leave to set in the fridge.
Once set, add your caramel on top of your Peanut butter nougat and peanuts. Smooth this out and leave to set.
Once your caramel is totally set, melt your chocolate with a little bit of butter and pour this on top, smoothing it out to form an even layer. Sprinkle on some flaked sea salt and leave in the fridge to set for at least an hour.
Enjoy x
