Adaptation of a Classic: Carnation Millionaire's Shortbread (Metric Measurements)

 Every so often, I take one of my tried and tested recipes and wonder does it need tweaking. So, this revamp is a good old English tea time treat: Millionaire's Shortbread!

For those from outside the Celtic Isles who don't know what Millionaire's shortbread is, it's a layer of plain shortbread biscuit, covered in a layer of caramel, and then topped off with a layer of chocolate.

Getting caramel just right is a challenge: do I need a thermometre? Do I need to water test it? How long does it need to cook for? It's finicky. I personally like a caramel that's creamy and smooth, more like an icing or filling consistency rather than a sugary, chewy caramel. For this, you need a caramel recipe that has just enough sugar to set it, and enough fat to keep the creamy mouthfeel. That's a difficult balance to strike.

To make my life easier, I thought I'd consult the leading authority on how to make good caramel for millionaire's shortbread: Carnation UK.

The Carnation UK website gives an excellent recipe for this shortbread, and the caramel recipe it gave was far too sweet for me! I tried halving the sugar, and it was perfect. Smooth and creamy, with just enough sugar to hold it together. The secret to this delicious caramel is condensed milk, and a lot of it: for one 8 inch (20 centimetre) square tray, you need an entire can, which is 14 ounces (400 grammes).

Another tweak I made was the base: the Carnation recipe suggests a crushed digestive biscuit base, like a cheesecake. I decided to make a shortbread base from scratch. I accidentally overcooked it, which it why it didn't cut properly. Oops.

So, here is my adapted version of Carnation UK's millionaire's shortbread recipe. Because it's an adaptation, I prepared it using the metric measurements given in the original: I thought it only made sense. There are, however, Imperial conversions.

Give it a try, and let me know what you think!

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DIFFICULTY
Each technique is very simple, but there are a few steps

TIME

About an hour

RECIPE RATING

Easy!

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INGREDIMENTS

For shortbread

225 grammes (8 ounces) plain white spelt flour

75 grammes (2⅔ ounces) rolled oats

200 grammes (7 ounces) very cold salted butter, or margarine, cut into cubes

100 grammes (3½ ounces) light brown soft sugar

For caramel

One 397 gramme (14 ounce) can condensed milk

150 grammes (5⅓ ounces) unsalted butter

75 grammes (2⅔ ounces) light brown soft sugar

1 teaspoon (5 millilitres) vanilla essence

Salt, to taste

For chocolate topping

100 grammes (3½ ounces) dark chocolate

100 grammes (3½ ounces) milk chocolate

2 tablespoons (30 millilitres) sunflower oil

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METHOD

• Grease and line a 20 centimetre (8 inch) square tin with non-stick baking paper. Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F, Gas Mk.4).
• In a food processor, pulse the flour, oats, and sugar together to combine. Add the butter and pulse on an off until you have a dry and crumbly mixture. The butter should be almost completely mixed in. If you don't have a food processor, you can rub the butter into the dry ingredients with your fingers, leaving the oats whole.
• Tip the mixture into the prepared tin and press in. Bake on the centre shelf of the oven for 15 minutes, or until the edges begin to brown. Once cooked, remove from the oven and place the tray on a wire rack.
• As soon as the shortbread is cooked, prepare the caramel: put all the caramel ingredients, except for the vanilla essence and salt, into a heavy based saucepan. Cook over medium heat until it boils, then boil gently for about 5 or so minutes. The mixture should thicken and turn a shade darker.

Before cooking

After cooking

• Pour the caramel mixture onto the still-hot shortbread. If you put the caramel on the biscuit while both are still warm, they will stick together better.
• Once you've made the caramel, make the topping: melt the milk and dark chocolate separately with a tablespoon of oil each. You can melt in the microwave, or in a basin over hot water.
• When the caramel has set on the surface, which will take about 5 minutes, pour the melted chocolates on top and swirl to your liking.
• Allow to cool completely, which will take about an hour, before chilling in the fridge for 2 hours before cutting and serving.

THIS TIME IN 2015: Banoffee Pie (Wheat Free)

THIS TIME IN 2013: Classic Boston Brownies (and a simple formula for great chocolate glaze)

There was no blog at this time in 2017, 2016, nor 2014.