Chocolate Caramel Shortbread Bars

Ingredients

1 ½ cups of confectioners’ sugar, 1 cup of granulated sugar, 6 teaspoons of pure vanilla extract, 4 cups of all-purpose flour, 14 ounces of baking caramel pieces, ⅓⅓ cup of heavy whipping cream, 12 ounces of semi-sweet chocolate chips, 2 cups of room-temperature butter

Preparation

Bring the oven up to 325°F, or 163°C. Line the bottom of a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with parchment paper. Lightly coat the parchment paper with a non-stick baking spray to make it easier to remove the bars from the pan after baking.

Put the butter, sugar (both confectioners’ and granulated), and vanilla extract (pure) into a large mixing basin and let it cool to room temperature. For a uniform and well blended mixture, use an electric hand mixer set at medium speed.

Slowly and carefully incorporate the all-purpose flour into the mixture. Keep on mixing until all of the flour has been incorporated. The finished shortbread mixture could seem crumbly, so keep that in mind. Nevertheless, it ought to keep its shape when compressed.

Press down evenly to create a foundation layer of about 3 to 4 cups of the shortbread mixture in the prepared baking dish.

After the oven is ready, bake the baking dish for around 25 minutes to form the shortbread foundation. The final product ought to seem like a solid foundation with golden edges. When done, remove the dish from the heat and let it cool.

Combine the heavy whipping cream with the baked caramel pieces in a medium-sized pot. To make a smooth sauce, melt the caramels in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly.

After the shortbread has cooled, carefully pour the caramel sauce on top, spreading it out evenly so it touches the sides.

On top of the caramel, equally distribute the semisweet chocolate chips.

Scoop out little amounts of dough using a small scoop from the saved shortbread mixture. Rolling the parts into balls and then pressing them into discs is the next step. Arrange these discs on top of the chocolate chip layer, overlapping slightly if needed.

After 35 to 40 minutes, or when the shortbread on top is golden brown, return the baking dish to the oven.

After the dish is done, take it out of the oven and put it on a plate. Before cutting and serving, let the Chocolate Caramel Shortbread Bars cool to room temperature.