Shortbread Rounds – Twix Topping

This is a twist on the Shortbread Rounds Recipe with the Demerara sugar on the edge, with a Twix caramel topping.  I Guess it’s a kinda round Caramel Shortcake.

Ingredients

BISCUITS

8oz Plain Flour

4oz Corn Flour

4oz Icing sugar 

8oz Butter

Method

In a large bowl, rub the flour, corn flour, icing sugar and butter until it you get a breadcrumbs texture.

Now some recipes get you to work the mixture into a dough at this stage……

You’ve all been in a snowball fight haven’t you? ? This is John’s way remember …… Take a large handful of your breadcrumb mixture and make yourself a “snowball“ and press it together. I did say make a snowball…… now make it into a potato croquette cylinder shape, about 4 to 5 cm in diameter. Flatten the ends. Now wrap your cylinder in clingfilm. Repeat with more of the breadcrumb mixture and put them in the fridge for an hour. You should get about 6 cylinders. Unless you have really big hands. ?

We don’t use the Demerara sugar for the sides on this one. 

After an hour, cut the dough into circles around 3/8” thick (about 6/7mm), thinner than the normal shortbread rounds, and transfer to lined baking trays. 

Bake in a pre-heated oven At 160c for around 25 minutes until the tops are lightly golden.

Remove from the oven and leave the biscuits to cool on their tray for around 10 minutes, before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

CARAMEL FILLING

5 oz unsalted butter , roughly chopped

5oz brown sugar

1 tsp vanilla essence 

1 can 395g condensed milk 

This amount will use up the full can of condensed milk but is about double what you need for the biscuits, if you want to half the quantity.  The caramel is the same as used on many of my other slices. Why not make up another tray bake while you are at it using my other shortbread base recipes.  

CARAMEL

Place butter, sugar and vanilla in a pan over medium low heat. When the butter is melted, whisk to combine with sugar, then just leave it until it comes to a simmer and begins to colour. 

When bubbles appear, add condensed milk. Whisk constantly for 5 minutes

Once bubbles start appearing, whisk for 2 minute. 

Then remove from the heat and set aside until the caramel cools a bit, it will start to skin on the surface, and can then be spooned over the biscuits. 

CHOCOLATE TOPPING

5oz milk chocolate

1/2 cup double cream

Place chocolate and oil in a bowl. Microwave in 30 second bursts, stirring in between, until chocolate is fully melted.

Pour in the cream and continue to stir until combined in colour and smooth again. You may need to zap the mixture for a few seconds in the microwave again and stir until the ganache forms.  When cooled enough that the ganache is thick enough to spread, you can top the caramel biscuits. 

My friend Helen Flexney helped with a picture of the Snowball and Croquette stage.