Millionaire Shortbread
Millionaire Shortbread is a sweet treat that originated in Scotland. In these bars, there are three layers of buttery shortbread, gooey caramel and rich chocolate. Flaky sea salt is sprinkled on top!
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- ¾ cup (1½ sticks) unsalted butter, (at room temperature)
- ½ cup slivered almonds, (toasted and finely chopped)
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- One 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
- 1 cup packed dark brown sugar
- ½ cup honey
- ½ cup heavy cream
- ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, (at room temperature)
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, (chopped)
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- flaky sea salt, (for sprinkling)
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly coat a 9x13-inch baking pan with nonstick spray. Line the pan with parchment paper, leaving a 2-inch overhang on the two long sides. Spray the paper too.
- In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to combine the powdered sugar and butter on medium speed until light and fluffy. Reduce the speed to low and beat in the almonds, flour and salt just until combined. Press the dough evenly into the bottom of the prepared pan. Bake until golden brown- 25 to 28 minutes. Let cool completely in the pan.
- In a medium saucepan, combine the condensed milk, brown sugar, honey, cream, butter and salt. Cook on medium, stirring constantly, until a candy thermometer reaches 236 degrees F (24 to 26 minutes). Remove from heat; stir in the vanilla. Immediately pour the caramel over the shortbread. Let sit at room temperature until set, 1 to 1½ hours.
- In a bowl, microwave the chocolate and cream for 30 seconds; stir. Continue to microwave in 10-second intervals, stirring after each until melted and smooth. Pour the melted chocolate over the caramel and spread with an offset spatula. Sprinkle with sea salt. Freeze until set- about 20 minutes.
- When ready to serve, use overhangs to transfer to a cutting board and cut into squares. Store, refrigerated, in an airtight container for up to a week.
These Millionaire Shortbread bars have always caught my eye. They’re an attractive looking dessert with three clean layers. And all three layers happen to taste pretty amazing too! The sea salt added to the top is, of course, optional… but that sweet and salty combination is pretty delicious so I recommend including it.
This recipe comes from a new book that I just bought: Good Housekeeping’s The Best-Ever Cookie Book- 175 Tested ‘Til Perfect Recipes for Crispy, Chewy and Ooey-Gooey Treats. Since baking cookies and bars are my absolute favorite things to bake in the kitchen, this book was a good find! There are recipes for drop cookies, slice & bake cookies, bars/blondies/brownies, spectacular cookie creations and holiday treats. I’ve already baked Salted Chocolate Caramel Cookies from the book for my RecipesForHolidays.com website. They were fabulous! And I’ve always wanted to make these Millionaire Bars, so I was happy to find this recipe included in the book.
Here are some other recipes that I will definitely be making from this book:
Zucchini Bread Cookies
Glazed Sourdough Snickerdoodles
Frosted Lemon Ricotta Cookies
Red Velvet Snowballs
Cranberry Shortbread
Grasshopper Bars
Double Stuffed Brownies
Cherry Linzer Bars
Oatmeal Cream Pies
Gingerbread Man S’Mores
It’s absolutely a great book to add to your cookbook collection if you like to bake!
How to make Millionaire Shortbread Bars:
There is a complete printable recipe at the end of this post.
First prepare the shortbread layer:
It’s a mix of powdered sugar, butter, slivered almonds, all purpose flour and kosher salt. This layer is pressed into the bottom of a parchment-lined 13×9-inch pan and baked until golden brown.
Prepare the caramel:
In a saucepan, you’ll heat sweetened condensed milk, dark brown sugar, honey, heavy cream, butter and kosher salt. Stir, while cooking, until a candy thermometer reaches 236 degrees. Then pull it from heat, stir in vanilla extract and pour it over the baked shortbread. This layer needs to sit at room temperature for at least one hour. It will be a little bit thicker caramel than store-bought caramel. That’s best for making these millionaire shortbread bars.
Prepare the chocolate layer:
Heat chocolate and heavy cream in the microwave. Stir until smooth. Pour over the caramel layer, spread with an offset spatula. Sprinkle with flaky sea salt. Freeze until firm.
When ready to serve, use the overhang of the parchment paper to pull the bars out of the pan and move them to a cutting board. Cut into squares. Millionaire shortbread can be stored in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to one week.
