Caramel cornflake brownies are an incredibly indulgent and entirely different way to take your brownie habit. These fudgy brownies come topped with a layer of chewy cornflakes wrapped up in sticky caramel. Sheer heaven.
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These caramel cornflake brownies are the ultimate treat for lovers of both caramel and brownies. I can’t recall where I first saw these, but I knew I had to have a go at creating my own and here they are.
Make no mistake these cornflake brownies will result in sticky fingers and wide smiles. They are fun, decadent and gooey.
What are caramel cornflake brownies?
Quite simply, these bars are a combination of fudgy chocolate brownies and sticky caramel cornflake slices. The layer of cornflakes sits on top of the brownies to make an incredible treat.
These cornflake topped brownies could also be called caramel cornflake bars, crunchy brownies or cornflake crunch brownies.
Why you’ll love these cornflake brownies
- Appearance: the contrast of golden cornflakes sitting on top of rich dark chocolate is extremely appealing to the eye.
- Taste: expect a mouthful of sweetness in every bite of your caramel cornflake brownie. There is no denying that these squares are sweet. But the depth of flavour provided by the chocolate and caramel is divine.
- Texture: there’s the fudginess of the brownies combined with the slightly crunchy, decidedly chewy nature of the caramel-wrapped cornflakes. It’s the perfect partnership.
- Unique: these cornflake brownies are anything but ordinary. Expect your family & friends to be impressed when you hand them out.
- Feed a crowd: as these bars are very decadent small portions are the way forward. This recipe produces 16 neat squares.
I won’t lie, they are a little harder to make than regular chocolate brownies as you’ll need to make the caramel. But I can promise you that these caramel cornflakes topped brownies are worth the extra effort.
If you love adventurous brownies don’t miss my matcha brownies or my fresh raspberry brownies. They are both quite indulgent and full of character.
Ingredients notes
- Cornflakes: use freshly opened cornflakes rather than ones that have been open for a while. They need to have plenty of crunchy bite to them. If the box has been open for a while they may have taken on a stale, cardboardy edge. I’m also a cornflake snob and recommend Kellogg’s above all other brands.
- Butter: proper butter is the best option for the fullest, richest flavour to your caramel cornflake brownies.
- Dark chocolate: use chocolate with around 70% cocoa solids. Please do not use milk chocolate as it will be far too sweet.
- Sugar: a mixture of dark muscovado sugar and white caster sugar is required to ensure the brownies are deliciously soft and fudgy.
- Eggs: use 2 whole eggs plus 2 egg yolks. The additional yolks add to the texture of the chocolate brownies.
- Flour: use plain flour (all-purpose flour). Please do not use self-raising flour as it is not a suitable substitute because it contains raising agents.
- Cocoa powder: a small amount helps to intensify the rich chocolate flavour in these caramel cornflake bars.
- Cream: you’ll need double cream when making the caramel. This has a fat content of around 48%.
- Extras: salt & vanilla extract enhances the base flavour in both the brownie and cornflake layers whilst a touch of baking spice boosts the deliciousness of the caramel-wrapped cornflakes.
Equipment notes
You’ll need a deep-sided 20cm (8-inch) square baking tin for this recipe.
Instructions
Full instructions and measurements are given in the printable recipe card at the end of this post.
- Put the cornflakes onto a baking sheet, crush lightly with your hands then mix the baking spices in. Bake for 10 minutes.
- Melt the butter and chocolate. Stir to combine.
- Add the sugars & salt and beat in with a balloon whisk.
- Beat in the eggs & egg yolks then beat in the salt & vanilla extract.
- Sieve the flour and cocoa into the bowl and whisk in until just smooth.
- Pour the batter into a prepared tin and bake for approximately 20 minutes.
- Meanwhile, make the caramel. Put the sugar in a flat layer in a medium pan and place over a medium heat until it dissolves and turns amber.
- Stir in the butter and cream. It may spit and sizzle, so beware. If it turns lumpy then place the pan over a low heat and stir until smooth. Mix in the salt and vanilla extract.
- Tip the baked cornflakes into the pan and mix until they are thoroughly coated in caramel.
- Spoon the cornflakes over the top of the brownies whilst they are still hot. Press down lightly then leave to cool completely. When cold, cover the tin and leave to set for at least 6 hours then cut into squares.
Top Tips: Don’t skip crushing the brownies as they will stick together better. Also, it’s essential to bake the cornflakes to help keep them fresh once they are covered in caramel. If you do not bake them your cornflake topping may end up feeling a little stale.
Expert Tips
- Use the correct size tin. In this case a 2-cm (8-inch) square tin.
- Always weigh your ingredients accurately. The best way to do this is to use digital scales and measure in grams. I do not give cup measurements because they are wildly inaccurate.
- Don’t overbake your brownies. As a guide, 20 minutes should suffice for the bake time, but test around the 18-minute mark to be on the safe side.
- As all ovens vary, don’t be afraid to bake for a couple more minutes if, after testing, you feel they need slightly longer.
- Keep a close eye on your caramel as it cooks. It is easy to burn it.
- Keep the heat at medium as the caramel cooks. Don’t be tempted to raise the temperature to cook it more quickly as it’s likely the caramel will burn.
Variations
You can easily turn the recipe into salted caramel cornflake brownies by stirring ½ – 1 teaspoon of sea salt into the caramel once it has cooked. Likewise, a handful of chopped pecan nuts or almonds stirred into the caramel would work nicely too.
Frequently asked questions
If your caramel seizes when the butter or cream is added, this is because of the difference in temperature between the hot caramel and the other ingredients. It is normal. Minimise this issue by using room-temperature butter and cream then just cook the caramel over a low heat, stirring constantly, until it loosens again.
Technically, yes you could use store-bought caramel to make this recipe. However, it’s hard to know how thick or runny premade caramel sauces are. If the sauce is too runny them the layer of caramel cornflakes will not set firmly.
I would be very wary about using alternative cereal as many in the stores are just too sweet. Rice Krispies would be the only other one I would consider a viable substitution. And I’d definitely avoid using Frosties or Crunchy Nut Cornflakes as these are very sweet cereals already.
These bars are best stored at room temperature for up to three days. Wrap them in foil and store them in an airtight tin.
I do not recommend freezing these cornflake brownies as the texture of the cereal is adversely affected in the process.
More cornflake recipes to try
Have you made this recipe for caramel cornflake brownies? Please give the recipe a rating or leave a comment – I love to hear how you get along with my creations.
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📖 Recipe
Caramel Cornflake Brownies
Equipment
- 1 x 20cm (8-inch) deep-sided square baking tin
Ingredients
For the cornflake layer
- 150 g Cornflakes
- ½ teaspoon Ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon Mixed spice or pumpkin or chai spice
- 300 g Caster sugar
- 100 g Butter
- 200 ml Double cream
- 2 teaspoons Vanilla extract
- ½ Teaspoon Sea salt flakes
For the brownie layer
- 170 g Dark chocolate with 70% cocoa saolids
- 120 g Butter
- 110 g Dark muscovado sugar
- 100 g Caster sugar
- 2 Eggs large, free-range
- 2 Egg yolks
- 85 g Plain flour all-purpose
- 30 g Cocoa powder
- 2 teaspoons Vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
Instructions
Prepare the Cornflakes
- Preheat your oven to 140C/ 280F.
- Put the cornflakes onto a baking sheet, crush lightly with your hands then mix the baking spices in. Bake for 10 minutes then set them aside.
Make the brownies
- Raise the oven temperature to 180C/ 350F and grease & line a deep-sided 20cm (8-inch) square baking tin with baking parchment.
- Melt the butter and chocolate either over a bain-Marie or in short 30-second bursts in a microwave on medium power. Stir to combine.
- Add the sugars & salt and beat in with a balloon whisk.
- Beat in the eggs & egg yolks then beat in the salt & vanilla extract.
- Sieve the flour and cocoa into the bowl and whisk in until just smooth.
- Pour the batter into a prepared tin and bake for approximately 20 minutes (make the caramel while it bakes).
- Test your brownie with a toothpick – if raw batter is evident on the stick continue to bake for another 2-3 minutes and test again. Once is is baked sufficiently, remove the pan from the oven.
Make the caramel cornflake topping
- Meanwhile, put the sugar in a flat layer in a medium pan and place it over a medium heat until it dissolves and turns deep amber in colour. Do not stir the sugar, but do turn the pan every so often to ensure that the caramel cooks evenly.
- Stir in the butter and cream. It may spit and sizzle, so beware. If it turns lumpy place the pan over a low heat and stir until smooth. Mix in the salt and vanilla extract.
- Tip the baked cornflakes into the pan and mix until they are thoroughly coated in caramel.
- Spoon the cornflakes over the top of the brownies whilst they are still hot. Press down lightly then leave to cool completely. When cold, cover the tin and leave to set for at least 6 hours then cut into squares.
Notes
- Don’t skip crushing the brownies as they will stick together better.
- Also it’s essential to bake the cornflakes to help keep them fresh once they are covered in caramel. If you do not bake them your cornflake topping may end up feeling a little stale.
- Use the correct size tin. In this case a 2-cm (8-inch) square tin.
- Always weigh your ingredients accurately. The best way to do this is to use digital scales and measure in grams. I do not give cup measurements because they are wildly inaccurate.
- Don’t overbake your brownies. As a guide, 20 minutes should suffice for the bake time, but test around the 18-minute mark to be on the safe side.
- As all ovens vary, don’t be afraid to bake for a couple more minutes if, after testing, you feel they need slightly longer.
- Keep a close eye on your caramel as it cooks. It is easy to burn it.
- Keep the heat at medium as the caramel cooks. Don’t be tempted to raise the temperature to cook it more quickly as it’s likely the caramel will burn.
- You can easily turn the recipe into salted caramel cornflake brownies by stirring ½ – 1 teaspoon of sea salt into the caramel once it has cooked.
- Likewise, a handful of chopped pecan nuts or almonds stirred into the caramel would work nicely too.
Linnea
Just made these for an event this evening. They turned out wonderful!! Super easy had a double batched whipped up in less than 30min and they were in the oven and baked each pan for 20min. Thank you so much for posting the measurements in weighted amounts. If you are a person who bakes a lot weighing ingredients is much better for results. Will be repeating this recipe often.
Jane Coupland
Thankyou, Linnea for such a lovely review.
Kathleen Robb
this recipe is complicated. probably won’t do it again but it was my daughter’s birthday so I was totally focused to get it done. . took me a couple of hours to prepare
Jane Coupland
Hi Kathleen, I hope that you enjoyed them once baked, but sorry to hear that you found the recipe complicated. Can I ask what part(s) you found more challenging and what aspect took longer than expected. I’m a little perplexed to hear mention of several hours as it really shouldn’t take more than 50 minutes or so to make them. Keen to hear more from you. best wishes – Jane
Jane Coupland
Thankyou for reading this post. My taste testers all adore these brownies, so I hope that you do too!