This recipe as promised.
But
first, I apologize for my lack-luster posts these past couple of weeks. I’ll
give you a little update of what’s been going on that has kept me from posting
as often as I’d like. First,
for the past week my son (now almost a year old) has been running a fever of about
101 degrees. I took him to the doctor have three days of said fever to discover
that he has a pretty bad ear infection. He hadn’t complained, hadn’t tugged on
his ear or given me any type of indication that his ear was hurting. That’s the
first thing. The second is that in addition to an ear infection, my child has
been a late bloomer in the teeth department, receiving his first tooth just a
couple of weeks ago. I thought that first teething experience passed without
the horror I had heard about, but I was wrong. With the onset of this ear
infection my son decided it was time to cut 4 new teeth this week! We, my
husband and I, have been up all night and day comforting a screaming baby, and
nursing colds ourselves.
Then,
to top that off, my son showed what looked like an allergic reaction to the
antibiotics his doctor put him on. My husband called me on Sunday afternoon as
I took a stroll after lunch to tell me M had woken up from his nap with a rash
spreading over his whole body. I ran part of the mile home in shoes that dug
into my feet like a dog gnawing a bone and held him as we quickly called his
doctor. It turned out not to be an allergic reaction, but rather a very common
reaction to amoxicillin. Regardless, I was drained both physically and emotionally
from such a tiring week.
Things
seem to be looking up so far this week, but all three of us are still
recovering from the ordeal.
So,
how’s that for an update? Now onto the recipe!
The
creation was Caramel and Chocolate-Glazed Shortbread Bites which I found in Good Housekeeping: Brownies.
I
thought this recipe was going to be a challenge for me (I’m not much of an
experienced baker), but I actually found it to be quick and easy.
Ingredients:
Shortbread Crust:
¾ cup butter (1 ½ sticks), softened
¾ cup confectioners’ sugar
1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
2 ¼ cup all-purpose flour
Caramel Filling:
1 Cup packed brown sugar
½ cup honey
½ cup butter (1 stick), cut into pieces
1/3 cup granulated sugar
¼ cup heavy or whipping cream
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
As for the chocolate glaze, I saved myself time and money by
buying Duncan-Hines Chocolate glaze instead of making my own; it turned out
quite well.
1.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 13” by 9”
baking pan with foil. Grease foil
2.
Prepare crust: in large bowl, with mixer at
medium speed, beat butter, confectioners’ sugar, and vanilla until cream, about
2 minutes. At low speed, gradually beat in flour until evenly moistened
)mixture will resemble fine crumbs).
3.
Sprinkle crumbs in prepared pan. With hand,
firmly pat crumbs onto bottom and about ¼ inch up sides of pan to form crust.
Bake until lightly browned, 25-30 minutes. Place on wire rack.
4.
Prepare filling: in 2-quart saucepan, heat brown
sugar, honey, butter, granulated sugar, cream, and vanilla, stirring
frequently, to full rolling boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-high;
set candy thermometer in place and continue cooking, without stirring, until
temperature reaches 248 degrees, or firm-ball stage (when small amount of
mixture dropped in very cold water forms a ball that does not flatten upon removal
from water).
5.
Pour hot caramel over warm crust. Cool in pan on
wire rack 1 hour or until caramel is room temperature and has formed a skin on
top.
6.
Pour glaze over filling; spread evenly, being
careful not to push caramel layer around. Cover and refrigerate until bars are
cold and glaze has set, at least 30 minutes.
7.
When cold, lift foil, with pastry, out of pan;
[eel foil away from sides. Cut lengthwise into 6 strips, then cut each strip
crosswise into 8 bars. Store bars in refrigerator, in tightly covered
container, with waxed paper between layers, up to two weeks.
8.
Now, I tried to cut the shortbread, but it
turned out to be rock-hard. So, mine turned into pretty small “Shortbread
Bites,” which kind of made them into more of a candy rather than shortbread.
So, do whichever works for you.
Until
the next time!
