Did you know today is National Caramel Day? Yep! that is actually a real thing. Celebrate today by adding a little bit of caramel into your life! These cookies are a great start! Similar to my Walnut Turtle Cookies, these are little fun cookies. Made with a sugar cookie crust and just enough salt to give you that sweet & salty pairing!

Made in a mini muffin pan, these are small and make about 48 cookies. I love making things in my mini muffin pan because everything turns out looking cute. I have found that more people like the mini desserts than the larger ones, which means that they end up eating more of them. It works out especially if you make these for an event where you know there will be other sweets that people will be wanting to try!  Great for parties or giving away! Let me know how it goes in the comments! Happy Caramel Day!

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Salted Caramel Cookies

Ingredients:

  • 1 Cup Unsalted Butter (Softened)
  • 2 1/4 Cup All-Purpose Flour
  • 3/4 Cup Granulated Sugar
  • 2 Teaspoons Vanilla Extract
  • 1/2 Teaspoon Baking Powder
  • 1/4 Teaspoon Salt
  • 1 Egg
  • 6 oz Caramel Squares
  • 1/4 Cup Heavy Cream
  • Coarse Salt (for top)

Directions:

1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a wire cooling rack with parchment paper.

2. In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the butter and sugar together.

3. Add the vanilla and egg and mix on low-speed until combined.

4. In a separate bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, and salt.  Gradually add into the wet ingredients. Mix until all ingredients are incorporated. You may need to scrape the sides of the bowl occasionally.

5. Roll the dough into 1 inch bowls. Place each ball in the center of a mini muffin pan cup. Press down with your thumb to create a well or indentation.

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6. Bake at 350 degrees for 12-16 minutes or until the edges are golden brown. Once you remove from the oven, immediately re-create the indentations in each cup using the backend of a spoon or wish. Allow to cool for a few minutes before moving cookies to a wire cooling rack.

7. In a medium sauce pan over medium heat, melt the caramel squares with the heavy cream. Stir continuously until bubbles form. Remove from heat and allow to cool 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Caramel Squares come in 11oz bags, but that was way more than I needed. I would say use about 1/2 the bag.

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8. Once the caramel has cooled a little bit, pour into a piping bag and pipe onto cookies, or fill each cookie using a spoon. If you are using a piping bag, wrap the bag with a towel, it will still be very hot.

9. Sprinkle with coarse salt on top as desired.

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