Pinterest Wednesday

I pinned this recipe a couple of weeks ago and it has been calling my name! There is something so seductive about salted caramel.  Combine it with a shortbread crust and it's impossible to resist. You've got the sweet/salty/flaky/buttery seduction all wrapped up in one.  This Pinterest Wednesday recipe comes to us from What's Gaby Cooking and it is yummy!  I am copying the recipe here with no changes.  I didn't have a 9x9 pan so I used an 8x8 pan which contributed to the shortbread crust being a bit thicker.

Salted Carmel Bars

Ingredients:

10 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg yolk, whisked
1 2/3 cups AP flour
1 cup unsalted butter
1 cup light brown sugar
12 tbsp light corn syrup
2 tsp sea salt
4 tbsp sugar
4 tbsp heavy cream
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
sea salt flakes

Instructions:

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees and line a 9-by-9-inch pan with parchment paper with the edges of the parchment hanging over the sides. This will make removing the bars easier.

In a large bowl combine the butter, sugar and salt with a fork.
Add the yolk and combine with the fork.
Add the flour and using your hands, combine the dough until its flaky.
Transfer the dough into the parchment lined pan and press down with your hands or the bottom of a measuring cup.
Refrigerate this for 30 minutes. Once chilled, bake for 25 minutes until lightly browned.
Once baked, remove and set aside to cool.

Meanwhile, in a pot combine the topping ingredients; butter, brown sugar, corn syrup, salt, sugar and cream.

Bring to a boil and make sure all the sugar is dissolved. Stir for about 5-10 minutes until its thick and bubbly. If you have a candy thermometer – the caramel should be about 230 degrees. Remove from heat, stir in vanilla extract and pour on top of the shortbread.Refrigerate for 2-4 hours. Then sprinkle with the sea salt flakes and serve!  

Mud House Notes

These are rich and delicious but must be kept refrigerated until serving. I refrigerated mine overnight but after only about 10 minutes at room temperature, the caramel melted and looked like this: 

Next time I will cook the caramel a little longer to a higher temperature than recommended in the recipe.  I will cook it until the temperature reaches 240 instead of 230 and I will let you know how it turns out.

The flavors of these bars are delicious!  A big thank you to What's Gaby Cooking.

I am giving this recipe 4/5 Prickly Pear Margaritas because they melted so quickly at room temperature.