They’re basically like a giant Twix bar. Need I say more??
The perfect buttery crust, filled with a deliciously salty, homemade caramel and then topped off with creamy chocolate…this treat is seriously the stuff dreams are made of.
Homemade Twix Bars
Serves 16
For The Shortbread
1 cup butter, salted, room temperature
1 cup powdered sugar
2 cups flour
1 tsp vanilla
For The Caramel
1 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup light corn syrup
1 (14 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk
dash of salt
For The Chocolate
3 cups milk chocolate chips (a high quality brand works best)
1 Tbsp butter
Instructions
1 Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Spray a 9×13″ pan really well with non-stick cooking spray.
2 In a large bowl, use a pastry blender to combine the butter, sugar, flour, and vanilla until the mixture comes together. Gently press the shortbread dough into the pan. Bake for 28-33 minutes or until the outer crust is lightly golden. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely.
3 Make the caramel by combining all of the ingredients in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Bring mixture to a rolling boil and continue to cook, stirring constantly until the mixture reaches the soft ball stage, about 6-9 minutes). I test the “doneness” of the caramels using the ice water method: Stick several ice cubes in a small cup and fill with cold water. Test if the mixture has reached soft ball stage by dropping a spoonful of it into the ice water. If you’re able to just barely clump the caramel sauce together in your hands to form a really soft ball, then it’s ready! This is the most important step! Don’t overcook the caramel or it will be hard and sticky on your teeth. When the caramel starts to turn golden, I do the ice water method every few minutes until it’s ready, just to make sure I don’t overcook it.
4 Once it reaches soft ball stage, remove from heat and pour the warm caramel over the cooled shortbread crust. Smooth into an even layer. Allow to sit until caramel sets and then refrigerate for at least 1-2 hours.
5 For the chocolate, add the butter and chocolate chips to a bowl and use a double boiler (or your microwave at 30 second intervals stirring in between) to melt the chocolate until smooth. Pour melted chocolate over the set up caramel and smooth into an even layer. Refrigerate until the chocolate is set. Enjoy! I store the bars in the refrigerator and they last at least a week.
Notes
*Shortbread crust recipe was adapted from King Arthur Flour.
