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Ingredients
Shortbread
1 cup (2 sticks) butter
(room temperature)
1 cup confectioner's
(powdered) sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
Caramel
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
2 tablespoons corn syrup
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sweetened
condensed milk
Chocolate
3 cups milk (or
semi-sweet) chocolate chips or chopped milk (or
dark) chocolate
1 tablespoon butter (if
needed)
Directions
Shortbread
Preheat oven to 300°F.
Spray a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with nonstick spray. Set aside.
In an electric mixer bowl, beat together the butter,
sugar and vanilla until smooth and creamy. Add flour
and mix on low speed until fairly blended, then
increase speed to medium and continue to mix until thoroughly blended.
Transfer the mixture to
the baking pan and gently press evenly into the pan.
Poke numerous holes all over top of crust with a
fork to allow steam to escape during baking process
(this will help to prevent bubbles from forming).
Bake the shortbread until the top turns light golden in
color and the edges turn a deeper golden brown in
color (about 30-40 minutes). Remove from the oven
and immediately run a knife or a thin flat metal
spatula around the edges to loosen the crust from
the sides of the pan. Set aside and allow to cool
completely.
Caramel
In a medium saucepan,
add all caramel ingredients and bring to a boil,
stirring constantly. Reduce heat to medium-high and
cook for about 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Once
mixture is creamy and has turned amber in color,
remove from heat and pour over cooled shortbread. Use the
back of a spoon to evenly smooth over entire top of
shortbread. Refrigerate for about 30 minutes to set
caramel.
After caramel has set,
cut shortbread caramel
mixture into 3 sections lengthwise (about 3
inches-wide each), then cut those 3 sections in half
crosswise. Using a flexible thin metal spatula,
carefully scoop up each section separately and place
on a cutting board. To cut into candy bar shapes,
cut each 3-inch section into strips (about 3/4 inches wide each).
Set aside near the stove while you melt the
chocolate. (Tip:
Using a
Scraper/Chopper
or a large pizza cutter wheel works very well. If using a knife, wiping
the knife clean with a damp paper towel will make
your cuts more exact.)
Chocolate
Place a large sheet of
wax or parchment paper near stove.
To heat chocolate, place about 1-2 inches of water
in a saucepan, and place chocolate in top
section of double boiler on top of saucepan (if you
don't have a double boiler, you can use a bowl that
is slightly larger than the saucepan instead). Heat water
over low-medium heat, and frequently check to see if the chocolate
can be stirred. (Note: The trick to successfully
heating chocolate is to heat it slowly, and to not
overheat. Keep the water level low enough that it
does not touch the upper pan or bowl, because that
will cause too much heat. As long as you heat the
chocolate slowly over low heat, you will be
fine.) If chocolate seems a bit too thick, stir in
the 1 tablespoon butter.
As soon as the chocolate
is able to be stirred into a creamy consistency,
using 2 forks, lift one shortbread caramel bar at a
time and dip into chocolate, turning to coat all
surfaces. Transfer each chocolate-coated bar to wax paper to cool.
(This process will get easier as you get the hang of
it.) Allow candy bars to cool at room temperature
until chocolate sets (30 minutes or more). |
