Homemade Twix Bars

Lucky me, I have a couple of children who love to bake even more than I do.  My waistline isn't sure it's such a blessing, but man oh man, my tastebuds sure do appreciate their culinary interest.  These bars are ones my daughter whipped up one day right before guests arrived.  Unfortunately she had not read ahead in the recipe to notice that they needed time to set up beforehand, so we served them to our guests as a not-so-lovely chocolate-caramel soup.  We cleaned up from dinner that night, set them aside, and totally forgot about them until a couple of days later when we rediscovered them as perfectly set-up chocolate-caramel bars of goodness!  After tasting them the second time, there was no forgetting them anymore and it did not take long for the rest of them to disappear.   These were one of the best desserts I've had in a long time!  

Click here for printable recipe (link updated).

Posted by Lara.

The ingredients:
SHORTBREAD LAYER:
1-1/2 cups butter, softened
1-1/2 cups powdered sugar
3 tsp. vanilla
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp. salt

Beat together butter and sugar and add vanilla. Stir in flour and salt until smooth. Press dough into a 9x13-inch baking dish (or up to a 12x16-inch pan) and poke several times with a fork.  (How big your pan is, will determine how thick your layers are.)

 
Bake at 325-degrees for about 22-25 minutes, or until light golden brown. Set aside and allow to cool completely.  

CARAMEL LAYER:


1-1/2 cups butter
1-1/2 cups sweetened condensed milk
1-1/2 cups brown sugar
6 Tbs. corn syrup
1-1/2 tsp. vanilla

In a saucepan over low heat, melt butter then stir in remaining ingredients, except vanilla.

 Stir in remaining ingredients except for vanilla and bring to a boil, stirring constantly.  Reduce heat to medium-low and stir at a low rolling boil for about 7 minutes.  Remove from heat and add vanilla.  

Pour caramel over cooled shortbread and allow to set up for several hours or overnight.  We placed ours in the fridge to hasten the process.   

CHOCOLATE LAYER:

3-4 cups chocolate chips (we liked ours with dark chocolate)
2 Tbs. shortening

In a medium microwaveable bowl, melt chocolate chips and shortening together on high heat for two minutes, stirring every thirty seconds.  Return to refrigerator to set, then cut into bars. Makes about 30 bars.
Store bars in a tightly covered container in the fridge with wax paper between layers.  Allow to sit at room temperature for a few minutes before eating.  

Enjoy!  

NOTE:  For an extra special treat, try these in a candy mold.    We coated the outside of the mold with melted chocolate, allowed it to set up, then placed a very small piece of shortbread (or Rice Krispies) and a spoonful of caramel into the mold and covered it with chocolate.  My daughter won a cooking contest with these tasty and pretty treats! 

Recipe Adapted from:  Boy Cheese Sandwich