Millionaire's Shortbread
So, a little while back I stumbled across a mention of Millionaire's Shortbread on this community, Googled the term, and became immediately desperate to make it myself. Two weeks ago my fiance got home from a meeting and told me that he'd volunteered us to bring a dessert to a potluck scheduled for this past Sunday. Hooray, an excuse to bake!
This was my first attempt, and it came out pretty darned good if I do say so myself (and I do!).
I blended recipes a little bit. I used this recipe for the shortbread part:
SHORTBREAD:
3/4 cup (1 1/2 stick) (170 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/4 cup (50 grams) granulated white sugar
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups (210 grams) all purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
In the bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the vanilla extract. Add the flour and salt and beat until the dough just comes together. Press onto the bottom of your greased pan and bake for about 20 minutes, or until pale golden in color. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool while you make the filling.
--from http://www.joyofbaking.com/Millionaire%27sShorbreadBars.html
Everything else came from here: http://swankypanky.blogs.com/bakeandshake/2007/03/these_pay_the_b.html
For the caramel:
1 14 oz can Sweetened Condensed Milk
1 stick (1/2 cup) salted butter
3 tablespoons dark brown sugar
Pinch of kosher salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the chocolate layer:
6 ounces chocolate, milk or dark
1 tablespoon butter
Preheat oven to 350° F. Oil an 8x8 square pan and set aside
Over medium heat, medium low if you're really nervous, mix together the sweetened condensed milk, butter, salt and brown sugar until caramel forms. Stir the entire time, and don't walk away from the pot -- it might seem like it's never going to happen, but what you want is a thick, slurpy caramel that looks like caramel. It should not be pasty, it should not be thin, it should be golden and as thick as what you'd expected melted caramel to look like. And I'm for real, here. Stir the entire time, to avoid burning. It may feel like the mixture is sticking to the pan, but as long as no black or dark brown bits come up, you're fine, that's why you're stirring constantly.
If the baby has the knives, then take the pot off of the heat and go take the knives away. Those are only for Grandpa Merv.
Once you've reached caramelville, remove from heat, count to ten, add the vanilla extract stirring well (stand back, it might sputter) and pour the finished product over the shortbread crust. It will cool quickly, be fast and confident in spreading. The nice thing is that it will, or should, be thick enough to spread all the way to the edges without pooling over into the space left when the crust pulled away from the sides. Allow to cool and set, about ten minutes.
Meanwhile, pour the chocolate into a heatproof bowl. If futuristic, use the microwave to melt your chocolate on half-power (or defrost), stirring every 40 seconds or so. If Old School, use the double boiler method and melt, in a bowl, over a pot of simmering water. Once melted, glossy and no lumps remain, stir in the butter and pour over the caramel layer, smoothing and spreading if needed.
Sprinkle bars with a pinch of kosher or sea salt, as much or as little as you like. Chill completely, until set, then score and cut into small squares with a sharp knife.
Eat all of them.
This was my first attempt, and it came out pretty darned good if I do say so myself (and I do!).
I blended recipes a little bit. I used this recipe for the shortbread part:
SHORTBREAD:
3/4 cup (1 1/2 stick) (170 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/4 cup (50 grams) granulated white sugar
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups (210 grams) all purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
In the bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the vanilla extract. Add the flour and salt and beat until the dough just comes together. Press onto the bottom of your greased pan and bake for about 20 minutes, or until pale golden in color. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool while you make the filling.
--from http://www.joyofbaking.com/Millionaire%27sShorbreadBars.html
Everything else came from here: http://swankypanky.blogs.com/bakeandshake/2007/03/these_pay_the_b.html
For the caramel:
1 14 oz can Sweetened Condensed Milk
1 stick (1/2 cup) salted butter
3 tablespoons dark brown sugar
Pinch of kosher salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the chocolate layer:
6 ounces chocolate, milk or dark
1 tablespoon butter
Preheat oven to 350° F. Oil an 8x8 square pan and set aside
Over medium heat, medium low if you're really nervous, mix together the sweetened condensed milk, butter, salt and brown sugar until caramel forms. Stir the entire time, and don't walk away from the pot -- it might seem like it's never going to happen, but what you want is a thick, slurpy caramel that looks like caramel. It should not be pasty, it should not be thin, it should be golden and as thick as what you'd expected melted caramel to look like. And I'm for real, here. Stir the entire time, to avoid burning. It may feel like the mixture is sticking to the pan, but as long as no black or dark brown bits come up, you're fine, that's why you're stirring constantly.
If the baby has the knives, then take the pot off of the heat and go take the knives away. Those are only for Grandpa Merv.
Once you've reached caramelville, remove from heat, count to ten, add the vanilla extract stirring well (stand back, it might sputter) and pour the finished product over the shortbread crust. It will cool quickly, be fast and confident in spreading. The nice thing is that it will, or should, be thick enough to spread all the way to the edges without pooling over into the space left when the crust pulled away from the sides. Allow to cool and set, about ten minutes.
Meanwhile, pour the chocolate into a heatproof bowl. If futuristic, use the microwave to melt your chocolate on half-power (or defrost), stirring every 40 seconds or so. If Old School, use the double boiler method and melt, in a bowl, over a pot of simmering water. Once melted, glossy and no lumps remain, stir in the butter and pour over the caramel layer, smoothing and spreading if needed.
Sprinkle bars with a pinch of kosher or sea salt, as much or as little as you like. Chill completely, until set, then score and cut into small squares with a sharp knife.
Eat all of them.