Billionaire shortbread recipe
This simple little guy may be my favouritest ever sweet thing. Turns out, that’s because it’s full of about 30,000 calories a bite. I think that’s why people just buy it. Knowing a billionaire shortbread recipe makes it crystal clear just how naughty it is. It’s worth it.
So it turns out that evaporated milk and condensed milk aren’t the same. Balls up. However, you can turn evaporated into condensed, and I think I did it with SLIGHTLY fewer calories than you would normally encounter, as, (whisper it) you should normally use 1 and 1/3 cups of sugar to every cup of evaporated milk to make condensed milk. My teeth already ache. I thought this would be unnecessary, so added sugar bit by bit until the caramel went – I reckon at around 1/2 cup sugar for every cup evaporated milk. So there, calories. Take that. (I also added a few scrunches of sea salt to make salted caramel. Yum.)
No. I couldn’t wait until they had cooled to eat them. That was the level of desperation involved.
Ingredients:
- For the shortbread:
- 250g plain flour
- 75g caster sugar
- 175g butter, softened
- For the caramel:
- 100g butter
- 100g light muscavado sugar
- 2 x 400g cans condensed milk (or evaporated – add 1 can at least of additional sugar)
- For the topping:
- 200g choc – I used 1/4 dark, 3/4 Galaxy milk, broken up.
Recipe:
First, get your oven on at 180c and grease and line an appropriate tin (33cm x 23cm is right). No it’s time to make your shortbread.
Mix your flour and caster in a bowl. Rub it gently through your fingers (which probably reminds you of making scones with your granny) but try not to melt the butter too much (“pastry needs cold hands” – nannas are the best). You should end up with fine breadcrumbs.
It should be crumby but compactible – if it’s too crumby add a little more butter. Press your mix into the bottom of your prepared tin, making a nice flat compacted layer. Prick it in lines with a fork so it doesn’t rise wierdly.
Bake in a preheated oven until slightly browned – around 20 mins. Leave it in the tin to cool down.
Now, for the caramel. If you bought evaporated milk, use 1 can extra sugar to your 2 cans evaporated. Measure the butter, sugar and condensed milk (or evap and extra sugar) to a pan and gently heat, stirring until all the sugar grains have dissolved. Then bring it to the boil. Here our ways part – if you used evaporated, you have to keep an eye here, because the mix won’t “go” until it has enough sugar. (This step may therefore take a little longer). Either way, boil for 5-10 mins, then reduce the heat to a blibbing bubble. Stir the mix continuously as the caramel starts to form – you’ll notice it “go” when the mix starts to thicken. If your mix hasn’t gone after 20 mins using evaporated, add more sugar. A recipe using condensed should take 20 mins of continuous stirring before it suddenly thickens up. Take it off the heat and immediately pour over your cooled shortbread base (it will start to stiffen as it cools so you want to use it whilst liquidy!
Put your mixture on a cold side (or in the fridge, once cooled enough to not raise the temperature too much) whilst you make the topping. Get a bain marie going on your hob (a pan with 2cm of water, brought to the boil, and then a glass oven-proof bowl suspended over it, containing your chocolate). Melt your chocolate slowly so it doesn’t burn.
Pour over your cooled caramel shortbread, and leave to set somewhere cool (not the fridge or the chocolate might speckle! It’ll cool and harden fine on the side, covered). Cut up and enjoy a massive guilty treat!! xxx
