Turtle brownies

Whoever invented the brownie is of superior intellect. Whoever invented the Turtle is downright brilliant. And the person who put them together to make a Turtle Brownie is a diabolical genius. Who is this culinary daredevil/deviant, you ask?

It's Betty Crocker. You didn't see that coming, did you?

This recipe for Turtle Brownies arrived in my inbox via a weekly Betty Crocker enewsletter--you can sign up for your enewsletter by clicking on the "Dinner Made Easy" banner to the right or at the bottom of the page.

The directions are fairly simple, though I would make a few changes the next time I bake them.

For example, the recipe says to pour 1/2 the brownie batter into the pan and bake for 15 minutes before adding the caramel, pecans, chocolate bits and the rest of the batter. TMI recommends that you put in 2/3 of the batter, let it bake for 20 minutes, then add the toppings with the rest of the batter.

My experience with the recipe as-is was that some of the caramel sank through the unbaked batter to settle too close to the bottom of the pan for easy removal. Not that I minded plowing through the entire pan of Turtle Brownies with a fork in hand, but in the event that you plan to share this tasty goodness, you'll want the caramel to stay towards the top of the brownie for easier serving.

And TMI wholeheartedly recommends sharing these Turtle Brownies. That is, after you've made a secret second batch that's all for you and currently hiding in the storage drawer under your oven. (No one ever looks there!) That one is all for you. TMI recommends plowing through it with a fork. Enjoy!