Millionaire’s Shortbread
by Author Sam Merritt
A sweet treat so decadently rich it’s been named “Millionaire’s Shortbread”.
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 1 hour
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
Servings: 28 pieces
Calories: 298kcal
Ingredients
Shortbread Crust
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened (226g)
- ⅓ cup sugar (70g)
- ⅓ cup light brown sugar, packed (70g)
- 1 large egg yolk
- ¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour (260g)
Caramel
- 2 14-oz cans sweetened condensed milk (792g)
- 14 Tablespoons butter cut into Tablespoon-sized pieces (198g)
- 1 cup light brown sugar packed (200g)
- ⅓ cup light corn syrup (80ml)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Chocolate Ganache
- 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips (340g)
- ½ cup heavy cream (120ml)
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract (5ml)
- sea salt for sprinkling
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F (177C) and line a 13×9 baking pan with parchment paper.
- Using an electric mixer, beat butter until well creamed.
- Add sugars and beat until light and fluffy, about 30 seconds.
- Add egg yolk and vanilla extract and stir well, pausing to scrape down the sides and mixing until ingredients are well-combined.
- Add flour, gradually (about ½ cup at a time), pausing to scrape down sides of bowl. Halfway through the addition of the flour, sprinkle in the salt with the beater still running.
- Don’t over-beat the dough, you want it to be slightly crumbly to make it easier to press into the pan.
- Drop dough over prepared pan and gently, firmly, evenly, press dough into the bottom of the pan. To make it easier, I usually lay a piece of wax paper over the dough and use the palm of my hand to smooth the surface (and then discard wax paper).
- Bake on 350F (177C) for 20-25 minutes — edges should be lightly golden brown.
- Allow to cool while you prepare your caramel topping.
Caramel
- Combine condensed milk, butter, brown sugar, and corn syrup in a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat.
- Stir frequently until butter is melted and ingredients are well-combined. Continue to stir constantly until mixture begins to boil (this could take several minutes, but you don’t need to increase the heat).
- Once mixture comes to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer (slowly bubbling), still stirring constantly. Continue to stir 10-15 minutes until mixture turns a rich caramel color and has thickened (should begin pulling away from the sides of the pot as you stir).
- Remove from heat and immediately stir in the vanilla extract and salt.
- Pour evenly over prepared shortbread, use a knife to spread evenly if needed.
- Allow to cool at room temperature for several hours or in the refrigerator for 1 hour before topping with chocolate.
Chocolate Topping
- Combine chocolate chips and heavy cream in a small saucepan over medium heat.
- Stir frequently until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth.
- Remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract. Allow chocolate to cool just slightly for about 5 minutes, and then evenly spread over prepared caramel layer. Wait several minutes and then sprinkle with sea salt.
- Allow chocolate to harden (I recommend placing in refrigerator for about 30 minutes — my family prefers these treats refrigerated anyway) before cutting and serving.
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