Millionaire's Shortbread

There are recipes that are incredibly easy to make and that also give us surprising results. Like these Millionaire's Shortbread bars.

It's a winning combination, no matter how you look at it. It's a three-phase bar: butter biscuit, toffee cream and dark chocolate coating ... It's impossible to say no to this temptation, and today we're going to show you the step-by-step instructions for the authentic English recipe for these incredible butter biscuits.

You will also know millionaire's shortbread as millionaire cookies or three-phase butter, dark chocolate and caramel cookies.

It is an ideal accompaniment for coffee, tea time, to serve with liqueurs or even soft drinks/shakes. In addition to being a very versatile preparation because we can serve it as a dessert, snack or even, at this time of year, to give to our friends or to accompany our tray of nougat.

Origin Millionaire's Shortbread

This very particular cookie is a sweet consisting of three layers: a cookie made without leavening agents and with a high fat content, toffee or caramelized condensed milk and a thin chocolate coating .

The unique, melting and buttery texture of the cookie is achieved thanks to the large amount of butter it contains, the toffee filling provides a very creamy and sweet texture and, finally, the chocolate coating provides the slightly bitter nuance that combines perfectly with the rest of the elements.

Millionaire's Shortbread evolved from early recipes in Elizabethan Scotland , the idea of ​​adding chocolate topping arose in the 19th century.

Originally, this biscuit was made from oat flour or ground oats . By the 19th century, candied orange peel and almonds were often added for special occasions, around the same time that chocolate was introduced for icing. The addition of toffee filling was the last element to be integrated to create these wonderful Millionaire's Shortbread bars.

Shortbread is a sweet, unleavened biscuit made with flour, sugar and butter.

Older recipes call for three parts flour, two parts butter and one part sugar, although contemporary versions may vary from the original. The biscuit gets its name from its crumbly texture , a result of its high fat content.

We should not confuse it with shortcake, a similar cookie made with vegetable oil and leavening agents.

The filling of this cookie is caramel. In its simplest form, there are recipes made with condensed milk that is heated until caramelized. But ideally we should prepare a toffee sauce. The addition of butter and cream is incorporated to obtain a creamy texture.

The chocolate coating should be made of a chocolate with a high cocoa content to counteract the sweetness of the filling. We should not omit the addition of butter, which will give it softness and a less firm consistency.

It is common to find preparations in which other ingredients are added such as corn flour, rice flour or even oats. Other variations use nuts, raisins or another variety of chocolate, such as white, in the chocolate coating.

Artisan Collection Ceramic Plate by Laura Ashley

Ingredients

For the shortbread

• 300 g soft pastry flour
• 280 g unsalted butter, cold
• 100 g sugar
• 1 large egg yolk
• 2 teaspoons natural vanilla extract
• ¼ teaspoon salt

For the toffee

• 400 g sugar
• 160 g water
• 225 g liquid whipping cream, high fat content, warm
• 225 g unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2 teaspoons natural vanilla extract
• pinch of salt

For the chocolate coating

• 250 g 70% chocolate
• 100 g unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 teaspoon glucose or Corn Syrup (optional, but recommended)

Elaboration

Prepare the shortbread

1. Line the Nordic Ware naturals baking tray with baking paper, to help it adhere without any problem, lightly grease the surface with butter.
2. In the KitchenAid bowl , add the flour along with the butter cut into cubes, sugar and salt. Mix with the paddle attachment at speed 1 until you achieve a sandy texture.
3. Add the egg yolk and mix again until completely combined.
4. Pour the mixture onto the baking tray lined with paper. It will have a sandy appearance, which is fine. Press down with your hands to compact it and, using a small rolling pin, roll over the surface to smooth it out and achieve a uniform height. If you notice that the mixture is sticking to the rolling pin, place a sheet of Teflon or baking paper on it so that you can smooth it out without the mixture sticking to the rolling pin.
5. Prick the surface with a fork.
6. Refrigerate the dough for 20 minutes while we preheat the oven.

Nordic Ware naturals tray

Bake the shortbread

1. Preheat the oven to 175°C with heat from above and below .
2. Bake in the middle of the oven for 20-22 minutes or until the surface is lightly browned .
3. Remove from the oven, place on a rack and allow to cool completely.

Prepare the toffee

1. In the DeBuyer sauté pan , add the sugar along with the water.
2. Place over medium heat and leave until you get a golden caramel, but not too toasted. Otherwise you will get a bitter taste. At first the water will start to boil and then the sugar will caramelize little by little.
3. Once the caramel is ready, reduce the heat a little and add the warm cream and mix with a whisk. When you pour it in, it will start to bubble a lot, this is normal. Continue mixing until the bubbles subside.
4. Add the cubed butter along with the vanilla and salt. Increase the heat to medium and cook, stirring constantly, until the toffee reaches 118°C . You will need to use a digital kitchen thermometer for this step.
5. Remove from heat and pour the caramel over the shortbread.
6. Let it cool completely at room temperature, you will notice that the toffee settles and gains consistency.
7. Refrigerate until the next day.

Prepare the chocolate coating

1. In a heatproof bowl, add the chopped chocolate together with the butter and glucose.
2. Place over a saucepan with water, it is very important that the water does not touch the bottom of the bowl, and place over medium-low heat.
3. Allow to melt completely in a bain-marie. Stir occasionally to homogenize the mixture.
4. Once melted, pour over the toffee.
5. Remove the tray from the fridge and pour the chocolate over the surface. Make sure the entire surface is covered, if necessary, tilt the tray to reach the corners. Try not to use a spatula to avoid leaving marks.
6. Allow to cool completely at room temperature and refrigerate for 8-12 hours before slicing . I recommend following this step to achieve clean cuts.

Nordic Ware naturals tray

We serve

1. Unmold by pulling on the baking paper, carefully separating it to avoid damaging the sides.
2. Using a sharp knife, trim the ends to achieve a clean, defined finish. Cut into bars or squares, as you like.
3. If you wish, you can sprinkle salt flakes on top or even add a little gold leaf.
4. We serve.

Grades

• To make this recipe I used my Nordic Ware naturals tray . It is a beautiful tray and perfect for this type of preparation. I am in love with it.
• To make the shortbread, I recommend using cold butter . This will help you to handle the mixture much better, both in the mixer and when transferring it to the tray.
• When making the toffee sauce, try to use a wide pan to help the caramel melt quickly and without forming lumps. In my case, I use the DeBuyer sauté pan, which is incredibly versatile.
• Adding water to the sugar to make toffee will help the sugar to caramelize without any problems.
• I recommend that the cream that we add to the toffee be lukewarm to avoid a sudden change in temperature. This can cause the caramel to become solid and make it difficult to obtain a homogeneous mixture.
• It is very important that the toffee reaches the specified temperature , otherwise we will end up with a very fluid toffee and it will be impossible for it to maintain consistency for cutting.
• It is recommended to use dark chocolate for the top , since toffee is very sweet. You can use the whole 70% or half 80% and half 70%. In my case, I did it the latter way.
• To make the chocolate coating, we must add butter to soften the consistency . If we don't do this, we will end up with a hard chocolate slab that, when we cut the bars, will crush the rest of the ingredients and the result will be disastrous.
• Glucose can be omitted , but I recommend using it if you have it at home. We use it to achieve a more flexible finish, to improve consistency and as a preservative (it helps the icing to look better over time). Corn syrup can be used instead.
• To cut the bars, I recommend you wet the knife in hot water , dry it and proceed to cut. Each time you make a cut, wet the knife and dry it.
• They can be stored in an airtight container refrigerated for 7 days.

I promise you that this is a recipe that you will repeat on more than one occasion. These Millionaire's shortbread bars meet a lot of requirements that make them indispensable; they are easy to make, they require little preparation time (although they do require several steps) and the result is exceptional, both in appearance and in terms of enjoyment.

We can't wait to see yours and hear what you think! Don't forget to mention and tag us on Instagram so we can enjoy your results :)

Sources: Delighted Cooking