Whenever I’m having a bad day or just need a little comfort food, nothing is more perfect than a delicious warm cookie! These cookies are ooey gooey greatness with the combination of dark chocolate, caramel and sea salt! Really, you just can’t go wrong. They are soft, buttery and just amazingly delicious. My husband rated them a 10, though he may be a bit biased. 🙂

Sea Salt Caramel & Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies

From Creme de la Crumb

Makes enough for 16 cookies

Ingredients:

• ¾ cup (1 ½ sticks) salted butter, softened
• ¾ cup brown sugar
• ¼ cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 egg
• 2 cups flour
• 1 small box instant vanilla pudding mix – dry, not prepared (one 3.4 ounce box, it must be INSTANT – not cook and serve, etc)
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 2 cups dark chocolate chips
• 24 soft caramels (such as Kraft square caramels, unwrapped)
• Coarse sea salt to garnish

Instructions:

1. Start by 3/4c beating butter, 3/4c brown sugar and 1/4c sugar together for 1-2 minutes until very fluffy. Add 1t vanilla and 1 egg and mix well.
2. In a separate bowl whisk together 2c flour, 3.4oz pudding mix, 1t baking soda, and 1/2t salt.
3. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix until incorporated and dough comes together. Stir in 2c dark chocolate chips.
4. Cover and chill for at least 1 hour.
5. Preheat oven to 350 and very lightly grease baking sheets. (I lightly mist mine with cooking spray, then wipe it off with a paper towel, too much grease will yield very flat cookies!)
6. Using a cookie scoop, create about 1 ½ inch balls of cookie dough. Press a caramel square into the center of one dough ball. Gently smash a second dough ball together and roll into one single ball. Repeat with remaining dough and place dough balls at least 3-4 inches apart on the baking sheet.
7. Poke additional chocolate chips into the top of each cookie if desired (this is just for looks).
8. Bake cookies for 10-13 minutes until set but still slightly undercooked. Remove from oven and sprinkle immediately with sea salt (highly recommended!).
9. Allow to cool at least 10 minutes on baking sheet, then transfer to a cooling rack and allow to completely cool to room temperature. Store in airtight container.

Don’t forget to follow me on Pinterest, Instagram and Twitter – @sugarbbaking.

Happy Baking!

-SugarB