Caramelized Brownies

I have a lot of brownie mixes in food storage (too many really).  But, they are great to have on hand for a quick and easy dessert.  We love to eat them plain right out of the oven, but I wanted to try something a little more elaborate.  I'm thinking Paula Deen's recipe for caramelized brownies will turn our ordinary brownie mix into something more scrumptious.

Ingredients  recipe from Paula Deen

1 cup chopped pecans

4 tablespoon butter

1 package Duncan Hines Chewy Brownie mix

1 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare brownie mix according to package directions. Spread batter into a greased 9x13-inch pan. In a small saucepan, melt butter. Add pecans and sugar. Cook and stir over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Drizzle mixture over brownie batter and bake for 25 to 30 minutes.

Servings: approximately 12 servings

Prep Time: 10 min

Cook Time: 30 min

Difficulty: Easy

I already had everything for this recipe in my kitchen.

I followed the directions, but my butter, sugar and pecan mixture didn't turn out runny like a sauce.  Instead it was thick and more like paste.  I wouldn't say I 'drizzled' it over, but instead sprinkled it over the brownie batter.  I baked mine for @ 35 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the middle came out clean.

The Results...
Did we think these were better than plain brownies?  We did!  All the flavors of this recipe went so well together: toasted pecans, rich brown sugar with the chewy, chocolate brownie underneath.  The only thing we were unsure about was the grainy texture of the brown sugar.  I expected it to melt more into a sauce, but it didn't.  I did my best to follow the recipe, but maybe I did something wrong?  Oh well, these brownies were still quite delicious.  I guess I'll just have to try this recipe again.  I really don't think my family will mind!