Millionaire’s Shortbread

So, millionaire’s shortbread. A shortbread cookie base with a layer of caramel and a layer of chocolate. Rich, right? You really have no idea just how rich until you try this recipe, which I found at Sugar Spun Run. Millionaire’s, indeed. More like billionaire’s in my opinion. Just a few bites are perfect, so cut small. And don’t skip the sprinkle of sea salt on top, either. You want a little salt with all of this sugar.

While these bars taste pretty good, I don’t think the textures are quite right – everything is very soft. I wanted a crispy shortbread base, so next time I think I’ll go with a different base layer and also scale back the chocolate to balance things out a bit more.

Ingredients

For the base

• 1 cup unsalted butter
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 1/4 cups flour

For the caramel layer

• 2 14-ounce cans sweetened condensed milk
• 14 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1/3 cup light corn syrup
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the chocolate layer

• 1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
• 1/3 cup heavy cream
• Sea salt

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9 x 13 pan with parchment paper, extending up the sides.

Make the base: In a mixer, beat butter and sugars until fluffy. Add egg yolk and vanilla and beat, scraping down the sides of your bowl a few times. Add flour about 1/2 cup at a time, beating to just combine; when you’ve added about half of the flour, sprinkle in the salt with your mixer running. You don’t need your dough to be smooth; it can be a bit crumbly. Press into the bottom of your pan and bake for 20-25 minutes, until edges are just golden. Remove from the oven and allow the crust to cool while you make your caramel.

Make the caramel: This is going to take a while, friends. In a medium saucepan, combine sweetened condensed milk, butter, brown sugar, corn syrup, and salt. Heat over medium and stir until everything is melted; once melted, keep stirring and bring the mixture to a boil, then turn it down to a simmer. Continue simmering, stirring constantly, until you reach 225 degrees on a candy thermometer; this took me about 25 minutes. The mixture will turn darker in color – like the color of peanut butter – and pull away from the sides as you stir it when it’s almost ready. Also, you may get brown flecks in your caramel as you stir, and this is totally fine.

Once you’ve reached 225 degrees, remove the caramel from the heat and stir in your vanilla extract. Pour the caramel over your base and spread it out in an even layer; set it aside to cool completely before adding the chocolate. You can chill it in the fridge or just leave it out at room temp (which is what I did) for a few hours.

For the chocolate layer, place chocolate chips and heavy cream in a microwave-safe bowl and heat in 20-second intervals, stirring between each, until the chocolate melts. Stir the mixture until it’s smooth, then pour it over your caramel layer and spread it out. Let the chocolate set for a few minutes, then top with sprinkles of sea salt and let cool completely before cutting. You can pop it into your fridge for a bit, which is what I did, or just let it sit at room temperature.

Cut into very small bars – mine made about 44 – and store in an airtight container at room temperature or in the fridge if you prefer.