Salted Caramel Butter Bars Recipes

SALTED CARAMEL BUTTER BARS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Line a 13x9" baking pan with foil, extending the sides of the foil over the edges of the pan. Spray the foil liberally with cooking spray and set aside.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the butter and sugar until creamy and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in the powdered sugar and vanilla. Lastly, beat in the four (4) cups of flour until a soft dough has formed. Press HALF of the dough evenly into the bottom of the prepared pan. Refrigerate the remaining dough.
• Bake the crust for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven but keep the oven on. Pour the caramel evenly into the crust, then crumble the remaining dough on top to cover the caramel layer. Sprinkle lightly with sea salt, and remember that there's salt in the caramel sauce, too :)
• Return to the oven and continue baking for an additional 25-30 minutes or until golden brown and the caramel is bubbly. If the middle jiggles a little bit, this is okay - it will continue to cook as it cools. Cool completely, then refrigerate for at least an hour before cutting into squares.

CHOCOLATE SALTED CARAMEL BARS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325°. Beat butter, sugars and vanilla until light and fluffy, 5-7 minutes. Gradually beat in flour, mixing well. Press 3 cups of dough onto bottom of a greased 13x9-in. pan. Bake until set, 20-22 minutes. , Cool 10 minutes on a wire rack. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, melt caramels with cream over low heat until smooth. Pour over crust. Sprinkle with salt, then chocolate chips. Drop remaining dough by teaspoonfuls over top. Bake until light golden brown, 30-35 minutes longer. Cool on a wire rack.

SALTED CARAMEL BUTTER BARS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325°. Coat a 9×13 baking dish with nonstick spray. Set aside.
• In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the butter, granulated sugar, and powdered sugar together on medium speed for 2 minutes. Add the vanilla and mix until combined. Turn the mixer to low and add in the flour, mixing until a soft dough forms.
• Press one-third of the dough evenly into the bottom of the prepared pan. Wrap the remaining dough in plastic wrap and chill in refrigerator.
• Bake for 20 minutes, or until the edges are a pale golden brown. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool about 15 minutes.

SALTED CARAMEL BUTTER BARS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees
• Line 8×8 pan with parchment & set aside
• In mixer bowl combine sugars & butter - mix on medium until creamy
• Add vanilla - beat until combined
• Add flour & mix on low until dough becomes smooth
• Press 2/3 of the dough into an even layer in the bottom of prepared pan
• Bake for about 20 minutes or until edges are golden. Refrigerate remaining dough while that is baking.
• While that is baking, prepare your caramel if you are making it from the candies by combining unwrapped caramels & milk in microwave-safe bowl & heat in microwave for approx 1 minute.
• Stir & continue to heat in 30 second intervals until melted
• Once melted add vanilla & set aside until crust is done baking.
• Once you remove crust from oven top with your caramel & sprinkle with your coarse salt
• Take remaining dough & crumble over the top of the caramel layer - do not press or spread - leave in crumbles
• Return pan to the oven & bake 25-35 minutes or until golden & filling is bubbly
• Let cool before cutting into squares. Store in an airtight container.

SALTED CARAMEL BUTTER BARS

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine the butter and sugars. Using mixer on medium speed, beat together until creamy. Add the vanilla and beat until combined. Sift the flour into the butter mixture and beat on low speed until a smooth soft dough forms. Spray a 9×13 inch baking pan lightly with non-stick cooking spray. Press one-third of the dough evenly into the pan to form a bottom crust. Preheat to 325°F Bake until firm and the edges are a pale golden brown approx 20 minutes. Transfer pan to a wire rack and let cool about 15 minutes. While the bottom crust is baking and the remaining dough is chilling, make the caramel filling. Place the unwrapped caramels in a microwave-safe bowl. Add the cream. Microwave on high for 1 minute. Remove from the microwave and stir until smooth. If caramels are not completely melted, microwave on high for 30-second intervals, stirring after each interval, until smooth (I did the melting in a saucepan stovetop since I don't microwave). Pour the caramel filling over the crust. If you are going to salt the caramel sprinkle it on caramel layer now. Remove the remaining chilled dough from the refrigerator and crumble it evenly over the caramel. Return the pan to the oven and bake until the filling is bubbly and the crumbled shortbread topping is firm and lightly golden, about 25 - 30 minutes. Let cool before cutting into squares.

SALTED BUTTER CARAMELS

Steps:

• Line an 8-by-8-inch baking pan with aluminum foil that extends over the sides. Grease with vegetable oil. In a heavy 4-quart saucepan, bring the cream to a boil. Add the sugar, corn syrup and honey and stir constantly with a wooden spoon until the mixture comes to a boil. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the mixture reaches 257 degrees on a candy thermometer, 15 to 30 minutes.
• Remove the pan from the heat and, with oven mitts on, stir in the butter, vanilla and 2 teaspoons salt. Pour into the prepared pan and let cool. If you are not coating them in chocolate, let cool slightly and sprinkle with the remaining salt. When completely cool, coat a cutting board and the blade of a large chef's knife with vegetable oil. Invert the caramel onto the cutting board; peel off the foil and invert again. Cut the caramel into 8 1-inch-wide strips; then cut each strip into 1/2-inch pieces.
• To coat with chocolate, melt the chocolate in a double boiler (temper it if you want the coating to have polish; directions can be found at www.baking 911.com). Using a fork to hold the caramel pieces, dip them one at a time into the chocolate and set them on a rack to cool. After dipping 4 caramels, sprinkle each with a little of the remaining sea salt. Transfer to parchment paper to set up and cool.