A lot of my Instagram, and Facebook followers have asked me for the recipe for my chocolate caramel slices that  I baked last week ! So here goes ..

 

disclaimer : they won’t last long around the house , they’re absolutely yummy !

I adore Donal Skehan, and his website is packed full of gorgeous recipes! Lots there for the dessert lovers also , so I used his recipe .

These chocolate squares are amazing ! They take a bit of time, so if you are making them in the evening, let them set overnight . They are worth the wait , trust me !

The recipe is fairly straight- forward. The caramel part can be tricky , in that sometimes the sugar can crystallise very quickly at the bottom of the pan , causing little brown specks to appear in your otherwise yummy caramel ! I find the trick is to stir the sugar instantly into the condensed milk mixture in your saucepan , so that it doesn’t get a chance to crystallise at the bottom .

 

Its trial and error for this one !

The recipe is as follows ..

For the shortbread base:
100g butter, plus extra for greasing
175g self-raising flour
50g caster sugar
For the topping:
200g caster sugar
1⁄2 tsp sea salt
4 tbsp golden syrup
200g butter
1 x 400g tin of condensed milk
200g dark or milk chocolate, roughly chopped

45 mins + setting time

 

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas Mark 4. Grease a 22 x 22 x 4cm baking tin with butter. In a bowl, use your fingertips to rub together the butter and flour for the shortbread base, then mix in the sugar. Press the mixture into the baking tin and bake in the oven for 10 minutes or until lightly golden. Leave the oven turned on.
2. While the base is cooking, prepare the salted caramel. Place all the topping ingredients, except the chocolate, in a saucepan over a low– medium heat and allow to melt, then bring to the boil and simmer for 10–15 minutes until you have achieved a nice toffee colour, stirring regularly to ensure the sauce doesn’t catch on the bottom of the pan.
3. Pour the caramel over the shortbread base and place back in the oven to cook for 6-8 minutes. When done, remove the baking tin from the oven and allow to cool completely. Melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of shallow simmering water, then pour the melted chocolate over the cooled caramel and spread evenly with a palette knife. Once the chocolate has set, slice into 16 squares, or smaller ones if you want them to stretch further.

enjoy !!

 

thelittlestcupcake xo