Millionaire’s Shortbread is a decadent and delicious treat that has been enjoyed for generations. This dessert has become a favourite in many homes worldwide because of its sweet and rich flavour.
Brief History and Origin
Millionaire’s Shortbread dates back to the early 1900s when Cadbury’s Chocolate Company created it in England. The original recipe had three simple ingredients: Shortbread, caramel, and chocolate. Over time, variations on the recipe have been developed to include different flavours such as nuts or fruit. The name “millionaire’s shortbread” comes from its original creator, who was said to be so wealthy he could afford to make this extravagant dessert.
Millionaire’s Shortbread – The Recipe
- Preparation Time: 25 mins
- Cooking Time: 35 mins
- Total time: 1 hr
- Servings: 12 squares
Ingredients
For the Shortbread
- 125g all-purpose flour
- 35g brown sugar
- 140g softened butter, cut into pieces
For the caramel
- 50g butter
- 50g brown sugar
- 200g can sweeten condensed milk
For the topping
- 100g milk chocolate, chopped
Instructions
- Prepare the oven and preheat it to 160 degrees C. Also, prepare a 12cm square baking tin with a 3cm lip by lightly greasing it with butter.
For the Shortbread
- In a bowl, add sugar and flour, mix well, then add butter and rub using your fingertips until the mixture looks like breadcrumbs.
- Then knead the mixture until it becomes a dough, transfer it to the prepared tin and press gently to make an even base.
- Prick the base using a fork, place it in the oven and bake for 20 minutes or until it becomes firm upon touching and the colour turns light brown. When ready, remove from oven and leave to cool.
For the caramel
- Place a saucepan over medium heat, add butter, condensed milk and sugar, and heat the mixture until sugar dissolves completely. Stir and cook using a spatula to ensure no sugar is left at the bottom.
- Then rise the temperature to medium-high and boil while stirring continuously. Then reduce heat to low and stir; cook for 5 to 10 minutes or until mixture is slightly thick.
- Then remove from heat and pour over the cooked Shortbread; leave for some time until cool.
For the topping
- Place a bowl in a pan filled with water over medium heat. Add chocolate to the bowl and heat slowly until it melts.
- When ready, pour the chocolate over the caramel and leave until set.
- When ready, slice into squares using a hot knife and serve immediately.
Popular variations
Here are a few ways you can change this basic recipe to adjust it to your liking:
- Raspberry Caramel Millionaires Shortbread: This vegan recipe has all the sweet Millionaire’s Shortbread elements. The fruity freshness from raspberry jelly, the salted caramel, gluten-free Shortbread, and luscious chocolate.
- Matcha Millionaires Shortbread: This recipe is inspired to be a Halloween dessert, but you should have it all around the year. We love the matcha caramel with a little bitterness, balancing the sweetness of caramel and overall Shortbread.
- Biscoff Millionaires Shortbread: This biscoff Millionaire Shortbread has layers of crunchy biscuits with soft caramel, and biscoff spread further dressed in milk chocolate swirls. We love the extra crushed biscuits on top; it gives a delicious crunch in every bite.
- Chocolate Chip Caramel Shortbread: Salted chocolate chunk shortbread, salted caramel, and sparkly multi-coloured dark chocolate make these Three layers of utter deliciousness. They are not just delicious but so beautifully marbled with chocolate.
- Espresso Millionaire Shortbread Bars: If you are a big fan of espresso and chocolate, these bars are a must to try. With the layer of buttery Shortbread, enticing espresso caramel and melted dark chocolate, these bites are hard to resist.
