Life As It Comes: Dulce de leche Brownies

It feels like we just started the New year and it's already March. Days are flying by so fast. Here in California we have a mild winter this time, so it's almost like Summer back to back. I didn't have to unpack any of our winter jackets. One thing I am very happy about is the early start for gardening. Since I am a newbie gardener, I am excited to try different plants.

Before I made these brownies, I would never give brownies a second look. I felt that they are very monotonous. But I have to admit that I am totally wrong, regular brownies can be transformed to mouth watering treats with multiple layers of flavor. I was enlightened with this truth while watching The Pioneer Woman show on Food Network. So, I adapted the recipe from there and changed few things like using dulce de leche instead of regular caramel sauce. The procedure is little time consuming but totally worth it. I took these brownies to work for a potluck and they got the nick name as "Sinful Brownies" :)

What you need:

1 box (18.25 oz) of Milk Chocolate cake mix ( I used Betty Crocker)
3/4 cup fine chopped Almonds
1/3 cup + 3 tbsp Evaporated milk
1/2 cup melted butter (1 stick)
1/3 cup milk chocolate chips
1/2 can Dulce de leche (1 can = 13.4 oz)
2 tbsp Powdered sugar for light coating

Steps to Follow:
(Pictures below will give an idea)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees
In a bowl combine cake mix, 1/3 cup evaporated milk and melted butter until everything comes together. Dough will be thick.
Divide the dough into two parts and keep half of it in fridge
Press remaining half of it into a well-greased 9 x 9 inch square baking pan.
Bake for 8 to 10 minutes. Remove pan from oven and set aside
In a microwaveable bowl add dulce de leche with 3 tbsp evaporated milk and heat it in 20-30 sec and mix it very well. Sauce should be pourable. If it is too thick, microwave for another 20-30 sec
Pour this sauce on baked layer and spread it to coat evenly.
On top of the sauce, sprinkle an even layer of chocolate chips and chopped almonds
Now comes the tricky part, take the remaining dough on a parchment paper and using your fingers spread it into a square slightly smaller than the pan, it doesn't have to be perfect.
Careful lift this layer and place it in the pan (on top of chocolate chips and chopped almonds)
Bake it for 20-25 min. Remove from oven and let it cool.
Refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours.
When ready to serve sift powdered sugar on top and cut into desired size squares