Chocolate Caramel Squares (Baking)

Member Name: skidd

Product:	Baking
Date:	27/02/09 (212 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Delicious

Disadvantages: They disappear too quickly

When I recently reviewed Sainsbury's Caramel Shortcake Bites, I harped on about the superiority of my Mum's version and promised to divulge the recipe. So here's a promise kept!

It may seem a bit fiddly but it's very easy when you get used to it. Also as it's done in stages it's quite convenient to prepare especially if you are a busy person with just a few minutes to spare here and there.

CHOCOLATE CARAMEL SHORTBREAD

**Ingredients**

For the shortbread
6 ozs plain flour
4 ozs butter
2 ozs caster sugar

For the caramel filling
4 ozs butter
2 ozs caster sugar
2 tablespoons golden syrup
1 (375g) can condensed milk

For the chocolate topping
1 bar (200g) of any chocolate you like!
plain or milk will work.

A Note on the Tin to Use
You can make a chunky version in a shallow 8ins x 8ins tin but if you prefer a slimmer version use a swiss roll tin (roughly 13ins x 8ins). It's best not to use non stick pans as you have to cut the mixture into squares when complete and this can damage the surface

**Method**

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/ Gas Mark 5. Lightly grease the tin.
2. Make the shortbread by creaming together the sugar and butter then adding the flour and mixing until the mixture binds together. Alternatively whizz all the ingredients together in a food processor. Turn into the tin and press down lightly. Prick all over with a fork
3. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes until golden. Remove from the oven and leave to cool
4. Place all of the ingredients for the filling into a pan and heat it gently stirring all the time until the sugar has dissolved. Still stirring, bring the mixture to the boil and cook for around 5 minutes until the mixture is golden and quite thick (not too brown!). (This can be a little tricky. After a few tries you get to know when the mixture is ready but I had a few disasters at first when the mixture was just too runny so after about five minutes I would remove from the heat whilst I dropped a small dollop into cold water. If it formed a soft ball it was ready!)
5. When the mixture has cooled slightly pour over the shortbread and leave to set - half an hour should do it!
6. Melt the chocolate either in the microwave or by placing in a heat proof bowl over a pan of simmering water and stirring. Pour it over the cooled caramel and spread to the edges. Leave to set for at least a couple of hours
7. Cut into squares or fingers as desired!
8. Enjoy!

**Warning**

If you have kids and/or pets leave this to set well out of reach. Many times I found little finger prints in the chocolate and once I found all the chocolate licked off and one dog with brown smudges all over her muzzle!

Summary: A Calorie Laden Treat