Contest Winner! Chocolate Caramel Shortbread Squares (a.k.a. Millionaire’s Shortbread)
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With a layer of shortbread, a layer of soft caramel and a layer of chocolate, these bars taste like gourmet Twix bars.
Thanks to all who participated in my holiday cookie contest! I received many wonderful family recipes but, in the end, these Chocolate Caramel Shortbread Squares of Scottish origin won me over. Known as Millionaire’s Shortbread, presumably because they are so rich, they consist of a layer of crumbly shortbread, a layer of soft caramel and a layer of chocolate. To me, they taste just like gourmet Twix bars. Congrats to Carrie H. of Rockville, MD, who submitted the recipe!
Other cookies submitted were wonderful too, particularly Dianne’s Dark Chocolate Buttercrunch with Sea Salt and Amy’s Snickerdoodles. I’ll be sharing these recipes on the site soon. (2-Tier Server by Julia Knight)
What you’ll need to make the shortbread squares
How to make them
Begin by making the shortbread layer. Simply combine all of the dry ingredients in the bowl of a food processor.
Blitz to blend, then add the butter in chunks.
Pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal, then add the ice water and egg yolk.
Pulse until the dough comes together in wet clumps.
Dump the dough into the prepared pan and press into an even layer.
Prick the dough all over with a fork and bake until lightly browned.
Meanwhile, make the caramel by combining the sweetened condensed milk, brown sugar, butter, golden syrup, vanilla and salt in a medium sauce pan.
Cook until the caramel is smooth and thickened, and the temperature reaches 225 degrees.
Immediately pour the caramel over the crust and let set for about 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, make the chocolate glaze by combining the chocolate pieces and heavy cream in a microwave-safe bowl.
Cook in 20-second intervals, so as not to scorch the chocolate, stirring in between, until the chocolate is smooth and creamy. Spread the melted chocolate over the set caramel.
Chill the bars for about an hour, or until the chocolate is completely set.
Then lift the bars out of the pan and cut into small squares.
Note: You’ll need a candy thermometer for this recipe to measure the temperature of the caramel. You can find one at any kitchen supply store. Don’t be intimated to use it; it’s easy!
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Millionaire's Shortbread
With a layer of shortbread, a layer of soft caramel and a layer of chocolate, these bars taste like gourmet Twix bars.
Ingredients
For the Crust
- 1 cup all-purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled-off
- ¼ cup dark brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 stick (½ cup) cold unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch cubes
- 1 tablespoon ice water
- 1 large egg yolk
For the Caramel Layer
- 1 (14-oz) can sweetened condensed milk
- ½ cup dark brown sugar
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons golden syrup (such as Lyle's Golden Syrup) or dark corn syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Generous pinch salt
For the Chocolate Layer
- 6 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, broken into small pieces, best quality
- 3 tablespoons heavy cream
Instructions
For the Crust
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9-inch square pan with aluminum foil, pushing the foil neatly into the corners and up the sides of the pan, using two pieces if necessary to ensure that the foil overlaps all edges (the overhang will help removal from the pan). Spray the foiled pan with nonstick cooking spray or grease with butter.
- In the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade, combine the flour, brown sugar, cornstarch and salt; process until well combined and no lumps of brown sugar remain. Add the butter and pulse until a coarse meal forms. Add the ice water and egg yolk and blend until moist clumps form. Dump the dough into the prepared pan and press with your fingers into an even layer (dust your fingers with flour if the dough is too sticky). Pierce the dough all over with a fork and bake until golden, about 20 minutes. Set aside to cool.
For Caramel Layer
- Whisk the sweetened condensed milk, brown sugar, butter, golden syrup, vanilla and salt together in a medium saucepan over medium heat until the sugar dissolves, the butter melts and the mixture comes to a boil. Attach a candy thermometer to the side of the pan and boil gently, whisking constantly, until the caramel is thick and the temperature registers 225 degrees F, about 6 minutes. Pour the caramel over the warm crust; cool for about 15 minutes, or until caramel is set.
For Chocolate Layer
- Place the chocolate and cream in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave in 20 second intervals, stirring in between, until the chocolate is about 75% melted. Stir, allowing the residual heat in the bowl to melt the remaining chocolate, until smooth (if necessary, place the chocolate back in the microwave for a few more; just be sure not to overheat or the mixture will curdle). Spread the chocolate over the caramel layer. Refrigerate the bars until the chocolate is set, at least 1 hour. Using the foil overhang, lift the bars out of the pan and transfer to a cutting board. Cut into small squares and store in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
- Note: The shortbread layer will crumble a bit when you cut it; that's just the nature of it.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: These can be frozen for up to 3 months. After they are completely cooled, double-wrap them securely with aluminum foil or plastic freezer wrap. Thaw overnight on the countertop before serving.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (25 servings)
- Calories: 174
- Fat: 9 g
- Saturated fat: 5 g
- Carbohydrates: 23 g
- Sugar: 17 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 2 g
- Sodium: 54 mg
- Cholesterol: 27 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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This is a delicious recipe but my caramel was a bit stickier than I would have liked. How can I alter the ingredients to make it thicker or is to more to do with the temperature?
Hi Nicky, Altering the ingredients shouldn’t be necessary; it sounds like the caramel was not cooked enough. Did you cook it until the thermometer registered 225 degrees F?
On December 12, 2018 you responded to a question about refrigeration and said they should be refrigerated. Here you say they don’t. Which do you recommend? Thank you.
Hi Sam, Sorry for any confusion. I’d store these in the fridge. 🙂
Hi Jenn, I am a HUGE fan of your recipes and have successfully made most of them gluten free and all just delicious! I am wanting to make these millionaire bars for a Christmas gathering and have a niece with egg allergies. So, my question is would the crust used for your lemon bars work for this? Or is there an egg substitute you can recommend?
Sure, Adria, that should work (and so glad you’re a fan of the recipes 💓). Hope you enjoy!
Thanks so much for your response! I cannot tell you how many times I’ve said to my dinner guests “This dinner was brought to you by Jenn from Once Upon a Chef!”. So, really, thank you for sharing your talents with us! Enjoy your holidays!
❤️
Hello! I can’t say I’ve made the recipe (I’m sure it is wonderful) but just want to let you know that the squares actually originated in Australia in the 1970’s. They did pick up the now common name “Millionaire’s Shortbread” in Scotland, though.
TM, I came here to make the same comment. We lived in London, where Millionaire Bars were ubiquitous. These are so rich, I think we should call them Billionaire Bars!
Have you ever tried scaling this up to a half sheet pan?
I haven’t, Megan. Please LMK how it turns out if you try it!
I have made this recipe several times. My family loves it!
Followed the recipe to a t and it came out just like the photos. Flavors were good and not too sweet. It’s caramel, people! Super easy and great to make ahead and keep in fridge. Thanks, Jenn!
I always follow new recipes closely. This time, I am pretty upset. I boiled my Caramel to soft ball (230 degrees) as per recipe instructions. I should have trusted my gut, as I’ve made Caramel many times. Will definitely have to boil it until hard ball (255 degrees) next time. A costly error.
I forgot to mention. The caramel seeped out and all over the plate after removing from refrigerator and sitting on counter for half hour.
Amazing!
No wonder they are award-winning!
Thank you Carrie H.
I had to make these twice in a month because they are so good.
Really important to get the caramel temperature correct, had a gooey layer one time, which was just as delicious, but of course messy.
Jenn or Carrie: How can I incorporate dessicated coconut, cocoa powder and walnuts into the base? I would like to try it as a base for nanaimo bars.
Appreciate your suggestions, thank you very much!
Hi Bob, I think you could get away with replacing 1 to 2 tablespoons of the flour with cocoa powder. Additionally, you can add a quarter cup each of the coconut and the walnuts to the crust batter. Make sure that you really finely chop the walnuts in order to get them to incorporate with the remainder of the crust. Please keep in mind that I’ve never made additions to the crust like this, so I can’t guarantee the results. 🙂 I’d love to hear how it turns out if you try them this way!
These were fantastic!
I think that some of the sugar could be cut from the caramel. The result is sickeningly sweet.
I made these since I love caramel!! Very easy to make and I have no real experience using a candy thermometer….no problem cutting into squares either….will definitely make these again!! YUM!