08 Feb Triple Chocolate Millionaires Shortbread

I’ve long since been a fan of Millionaires Shortbread. If you’ve never had this decadent treat, it’s made up of crisp shortbread, a gooey caramel layer and finally a layer of chocolate. Very rich indeed, which is probably how it got its name! 
As if this treat wasn’t tempting enough, I’ve made my own version with dark, milk and white chocolate on top. This looks incredibly impressive, but is simple to achieve with nothing more than a skewer. Plus, you don’t need a sugar thermometer to make the easy caramel layer, just plenty of Kerrygold Pure Irish Butter for that perfect gooey texture. That’s also the secret to the soft, buttery crumb of the shortbread layer. 
In warm weather the bars can be stored in the fridge – just be sure to wrap them tightly in cling wrap or foil to avoid any condensation on the chocolate layer.
This post is sponsored by Kerrygold. All text and opinions are 100% my own.

Ingredients:

(Makes about 25 bars)

Shortbread base:
225g Kerrygold Pure Irish Salted Butter, cold
150g castor sugar (¾ cup)
10ml vanilla extract (2 tsp)
315g flour, plus extra for rolling (2½ cups)

Salted Caramel filling:
200g Kerrygold Pure Irish Salted Butter
50g castor sugar (¼ cup)
385g tin condensed milk
60ml golden syrup (¼ cup)
5ml vanilla essence (1 tsp)
2,5ml salt (½ tsp)

Chocolate layer:
225g dark chocolate
75g milk chocolate
75g white chocolate

Directions:

• Grease and line a 20 x 20cm baking tin with baking paper, leaving a 3cm overhang on all sides. This will make it easier to remove from the tin later. Preheat your oven to 170°C.
• Cut the butter into cubes, then place into a food processor together with the castor sugar, flour and vanilla essence. Blitz until the mixture forms coarse crumbs. Alternatively, you can do this by hand – mix the flour and castor sugar together, then rub the butter into the dry ingredients with your fingertips until you have coarse crumbs. Stir in the vanilla essence. 
• Bring the dough together with your hands but do not overwork. Press the mixture firmly into the prepared baking tin and prick with a fork. Bake the shortbread for 20-25 minutes, until golden brown. Set aside to cool at room temperature.
• To make the caramel filling, place all the ingredients into a saucepan over low heat and stirring occasionally until the butter is completely melted. Increase the heat to medium, stirring  until the sugar has dissolved, then allow the mixture to come to a boil. Once the mixture starts bubbling, you will need to stir quite vigorously to prevent the mixture from burning. Boil for about 5 minutes, until the mixture has thickened somewhat and become a slightly darker golden brown. If you have a sugar thermometer this is around 107°C.
• Remove the mixture from the heat and allow to cool for 10 minutes before pouring over the cooled shortbread base. Allow to cool to room temperature then cover with tinfoil and refrigerate until set, about 1 hour.
• Remove the shortbread from the fridge and stand for 15 minutes while you melt the chocolate. Finely chop the dark chocolate and place in a heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water, stirring until melted. Do not allow the bowl to touch the simmering water or the chocolate may burn. Alternatively melt the chocolate in the microwave on low power, stirring at 20 seconds intervals. Repeat with the milk and white chocolate.
• Pour the dark chocolate over the caramel filling and spread evenly, then drop spoonfuls of the milk and white chocolate on top in blobs. Quickly use a skewer to swirl the chocolates together to form a pretty pattern. NOTE: If the caramel layer is too cold the dark chocolate will set before you are able to swirl the other chocolates through. If this happens you can use a hairdryer to remelt the chocolate.
• Allow the chocolate layer to set at room temperature, then lift the shortbread out of the baking tin and slice into squares. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.