Last month I participated in Bakin’ Friends. This month I put on my baking pants again to make these Chocolate Crunch Bars with Bourbon Caramel Sauce.

Pictures Updated August 2015

I had never made caramel from scratch. And to be honest it took me a couple of attempts. The first time it was too runny. The second time the consistency was great but the flavor was not what I was looking for. Luckily third times the charm!

The shortbread on these bars are like my Twix Bars but I decided to use brown sugar this time. The mix of semi-melted chocolate chips with the toffee crunch and let’s not forget the caramel make these bars decadent! Since caramel is John’s favorite I knew adding a splash of bourbon would just give it just one more layer of flavor. The best part is you can serve them warm and a la mode or cold right from the fridge with a huge glass of milk.

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Chocolate Crunch Bars with Bourbon Caramel Sauce

Ingredients

1 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup toffee bits
*Shortbread
1 stick butter cut into small pieces
1 cup flour
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
*Bourbon Caramel
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup heavy cream
4 tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 1/2 tablespoons Bourbon

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine all shortbread ingredients in food processor and pulse a few times until you get a crumb like mixture.
Line 8 x 8 pan with foil (this helps you pull the bars out easily at the end). Butter the bottom and sides of foil/pan. Pour shortbread mixture into pan and press down to form a layer on the bottom. Bake for 12 minutes. Let shortbread cool for about 15 minutes.
Add chocolate chips and toffee bits to form another layer on top of shortbread crust. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and place on a towel in the fridge.
While cooling, make the caramel. Mix brown sugar, cream and butter over medium low heat. While cooking whisk gently for 5-7 minutes or until thick. Add in vanilla and whiskey. Cook for another 2-3 minutes.
Turn off heat and cool completely.
Drizzle caramel on bars. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours before serving. Serve warm for a softer gooey bar with ice cream or cold for more of a hard crunch bar.

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