Thousand Dollar Bars
Thousand Dollar Bars
(30)
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| Yield: | One 9" x 13" x 2" pan |
Ingredients
Shortbread layer
- 1 cup (2 sticks) salted butter, at room temperature
- 1 cup confectioners' sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
Caramel layer
- 2 cups caramel, cut into small chunks
- 3 tablespoons heavy cream
Chocolate layer
- 3 cups chopped milk chocolate or dark chocolate, melted
- 1 tablespoon vegetable shortening (optional)
Directions
1) FOR THE CRUST: Preheat your oven to 300°F. Spray a 9" x 13" pan lightly with cooking spray, or line with parchment, and set aside.
2) In a medium-sized bowl, beat together the butter, sugar and vanilla. Add the flour. At first the mixture may seem dry, but will come together as you continue to beat at medium speed.
3) Take the dough (it will be somewhat stiff) and press it evenly into the pan. Lightly flouring your fingertips will help with any sticking.
4) Prick the crust all over with a fork. The holes will allow steam to escape and the crust will bake evenly with fewer bubbles.
5) Bake the crust until it's lightly golden brown on top and the edges are deeper golden brown, about 35 to 45 minutes. Remove from the oven and immediately run a knife around the edges to loosen the crust. Set it aside to cool completely.
6) FOR THE CARAMEL LAYER: Melt the caramel and cream over low heat in a small saucepan. Pour the caramel over the cooled crust and set in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to chill and firm up.
7) FOR THE CHOCOLATE LAYER: Melt the milk or dark chocolate slowly in a double boiler or over very low heat. If it seems very thick, add a tablespoon of shortening to thin it. Pour evenly over the chilled caramel layer and spread to cover all of the caramel. Return to the fridge until the chocolate is well set. Cut into 2" x 2" squares to serve. It's best to store these bars in the refrigerator.
8) These bars can also be cut and dipped in milk chocolate to resemble Twix ® bars. After the caramel layer has chilled firm, cut down the length of the pan, splitting the bars into two long, narrow bars. Then cut each long strip into "fingers". Dip the chilled bars into melted chocolate and place on parchment paper to set for several hours.
Reviews
02/02/2012- These are perfect. I made them a few days ago and brought some to my co-workers and everybody loved them. I definitely recommend them.
- 12/18/2011
- Great rich taste! I had homemade millionaire's shortbread in Scotland and have been wanting to make it ever since. Since I've had so much luck with KA's recipes, this was my first choice and it's a winner! No problems with the shortbread crumbling, but I was impatient and cut the bars cold from the refrigerator. Should have let them get to room temp since the chocolate layer cracked a little bit. They still taste amazing and my roommate took a spoon to the shortbread crumbs.... Nom nom nom!
- 12/15/2011
- I didn't enrobe the bars, they are already super decadent. I had the same problem with some crumbling, not a bunch, but some. Not enough to worry about it(I did weigh my ingredients). I mixed milk and 60% cacao chips. As with all of the recipes I have tried on the KAF website, these are really good.
11/19/2011- They tasted great. My problem was the shortbread crust "crumbling" away.
It's like the crust wasn't strong enough to support the caramel and chocolate.
Any ideas on why this would happen? I followed recipe to the letter.
Did your dough seem a little dry when mixing it? It could be that you had a little too much flour in your recipe. We recommend measuring flour this way for the best results: http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipe/measuring-flour.html. Otherwise, give us a call on the Baker's Hotline and we'll be happy to troubleshoot! ~Mel
- 11/13/2011
- OH!! MY GOODNESS GRACIOUS!!!! If you are a chocolate/caramel lover..Try this!!! I have died & gone to heaven... A "TWIX" bar for sure!!!!!! The shortcake was a little crumbly.but not bad.....I layered & then sliced. Can't wait to take into work tomorrow. Followed directions to the letter, BUT would advise to add some sea salt to the caramel to get that slightly sweet, salty taste. These are MILLION dollar bars!! Thank you, KAF!!!
11/11/2011- These were delicious! I have now made them dipped with milk chocolate, dark chocolate and white chocolate. They are all wonderful! I cut them into 3 x 1 1/2 inch bars. My only problem is that my shortbread crumbles so much. Any ideas as to what I might do to correct this problem?
Your shortbread may have too much flour or be slightly over-baked. Please feel free to call our baker's hotline if you have any questions. 802-647-3717. ~Amy
- 11/07/2011
- These were actually fun to make. But is there a way to make the caramel come out softer? I find it kind of hard and chewy and the cookie part had a tendency to break off of the caramel.
How about adding more cream to the caramel? Try increasing the cream by 1 T. Hope that helps! Elisabeth
- 11/02/2011
- Yum. Nothing more to say..... preparation was fairly easy. I made a homemade caramel the day before to make it easier. I cut them in skinny bar sizes and fully dipped in chocolate. I will be making these again and again. I also left them out in an airtight container. They recommend the fridge but I still have them and they are fine left out. I don't think they need to be put in fridge at all.
- 11/02/2011
- These are spectacular! They take a little while since you need to wait for the cookie too cool, caramel to chill and chocolate to chill, but they're oh so worth it. And really very simple to make. It's a new family favorite - THANKS! :oD
- 10/30/2011
- Happy Halloween! Perfect treat for the family this year. I made adjustments as follows (which is why a rated at 4 stars): - Made my own caramel - basic recipe of sugar, , water, corn syrup, salt, cream, and vanilla - made to a nice golden color for gooey caramel. - Used Ghiradelli milk chocolate for the top layer - cut into bars and then drizzled with extra dark chocolate - used unsalted butter and just salted the caramel to make up for that *things to do next time - instead of just lining the bottom with parchment, I will be lining the whole pan with extra on the sides. This way I can just lift the finished bar out of the pan. ~ thanks for the recipe - Amanda
