Hi, my name is Gavin Burke-Colon and I am 14 years old. I am an aspiring chef. I love to cook, and I have loved it for years. When I saw this contest, I thought I would give baking a try, so I made Bacon Caramel Brownies. I hope you all enjoy!

Step 1: Gather Ingredients

For the Bacon:

8 slices of bacon
1/4 cup light brown sugar

For the Brownies:

11 ounces dark chocolate
1 cup (8 ounces) unsalted butter, softened and cut into 1-inch pieces
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
5 eggs, room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/4 all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons dark unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup caramel sauce or dulce de leche

Step 2: Caramelize the Bacon

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Take bacon and put in a Zip-Lock bag with the 1/4 cup of light brown sugar. Shake until bacon is coated. Place bacon on a wire rack in oven (make sure to place a baking sheet under to catch any liquids that fall) and bake for about 15 minutes or until bacon is crisp. Remove from oven, let cool, and cut into large chunks.

Step 3: Start Brownie Mix

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter the bottom and sides of a 9x13-inch baking pan. Line pan with parchment paper and grease. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, salt, and cocoa powder together.

Step 4: Chocolate Time!

Put the chocolate and butter in a large mixing bowl and microwave for 30 seconds at a time, making sure to stir the chocolate after each 30-second interval, until chocolate and butter are melted and smooth. Add the sugars to the mixture, and whisk until combined completely. Then, add 3 eggs to the mixture. Whisk until eggs are incorporated into mixture completely. Add remaining eggs and whisk until combined. Add the vanilla to the mixture; stir in completely.

Step 5: Making the Batter

Sprinkle the flour mixture over the chocolate mixture and use a rubber spatula (not a whisk) to fold the flour into the chocolate mixture, until only a slight bit of the flour mixture is visible.

Step 6: Layering

Pour half of the batter into your greased pan, then drizzle half of the caramel sauce, or dulce de leche, on the batter, adding half of the bacon to the top of the caramel. Repeat using the remaining batter, caramel sauce, and bacon.

Step 7: Baking and Serve

Bake in the center of the preheated oven for 30 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through the baking time, until you can stick a toothpick into the center of the brownies and have it come out with some moist crumbs. Let the brownies cool completely, pull out of the pan, cut into squares, and serve. Enjoy!