Salted Caramel Chocolate Shortbread Bars

For dinner tonight Gerry requested the Turkey Burgers with Aioli Sauce that I made last week...yes, they were that good. These are the burgers with the smoky aioli sauce that gets mixed in with the ground turkey before they get grilled and more sauce goes over the grilled burger. The word yum about covers it. I also made sweet potato oven fries and it turned out to be a fabulous meal.

Today, I thought I would highlight the Salted Caramel Chocolate Shortbread Bars that Val made for me on Saturday, at my request of course. These bars start with the shortbread layer, covered with the caramel layer, topped with the chocolate layer and sprinkled with sea salt. These bars are heavenly!



From Annie's Eats
Salted Caramel Shortbread Bars (makes about 5 dozen small bars)

For the shortbread:
2 cups all purpose white flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks) at room temperature
1/2 cup sugar

For the caramel layer:
1 cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 cup sugar
4 tablespoons light corn syrup
2 cans sweetened condensed milk

For the chocolate layer:
8 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, finely chopped
1 teaspoon light corn syrup
1/2 cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces
fleur de sel or sea salt, for sprinkling

To make the shortbread layer, preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Line a 9 x 13-in baking pan with parchment paper. In a small bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Stir with a fork to blend, and set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar on medium speed until well blended, about 1-2 minutes. With the mixer on low speed, blend in the dry ingredients just until incorporated. Transfer the dough to the prepared baking pan and press in an even layer over the bottom of the pan. Bake 15-18 minutes or until golden. (If the crust puffs up a bit while baking, just gently press it down while it is cooling.) Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool completely.

To make the caramel layer, combine the butter, sugar, corn syrup and condensed milk in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Heat, stirring occasionally, until the butter is melted. Increase the heat to medium-high and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to maintain a simmer, stirring constantly. Continue simmering and stirring until the mixture turns an amber color and thickens slightly. Pour the mixture over the shortbread layer, smooth the top, and allow to cool completely and set. Chill the bars at this point to ensure that the caramel layer does not melt when the warm chocolate is added.

To make the chocolate glaze, combine the chocolate, corn syrup, and butter in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Heat, stirring occasionally, until the chocolate is completely melted and the mixture is smooth. Pour evenly over the caramel layer and use an offset spatula to smooth the top. Allow to cool for a minute or two and then sprinkle with salt. Chill, covered, until ready to slice and serve.