SACHER TORTE

February 9, 2024Leave a comment

On our recent trip to Vienna, a slice of authentic SACHER TORTE was on the “must eat” list (along with schnitzel, sauerbraten, sausage, spaetzle, and pretzels) … at one of Vienna’s famous coffee houses, of course. Do I have your attention yet?

Vienna is world famous for its desserts, all of which are named after emperors, princes, princesses, operas, politicians, chefs, countries. Keeping these traditional names alive is a reminder of Austria’s tumultuous past. From 1273 with the selection of Rudolph as king, the Hapsburgs ruled over this entire Eastern European area, maintaining control for 640 years. After years of wars and takeovers, and the fall of Napoleon in 1815, the middle class of Vienna exploded. People emigrated to Austria from all the surrounding countries and Vienna became a bulging metropolis.

Cooks and bakers were now sought after, not only for the upper-class households, but the middle class as well. Prices for the transportation of coffee, sugar, flour, as well as their improved quality, made fine desserts available to everyone. Preferring to spend their money on culture, ‘the art of the baker’ became a cultural phenomenon. Now with so many people in the city, coffee houses started springing up everywhere, providing people with a place to get away from the crowds, sit down and relax.

As gathering places for poets, academics and well-read citizens, who found their imaginations stimulated by the lively conversation, as well as, perhaps, by the caffeine, coffee houses were popular around Europe since the 16th century. In Vienna, however, coffee didn’t actually appear until the 17th century when Turkish coffee brewers introduced coffee to Vienna. By offering free ‘tastings’, the coffee merchants opened up a whole new world to the Viennese. Although Turkish coffee was rather bitter and unsweetened, the coffee house proprietors soon learned to serve the brewed coffee with hot milk or cream, and honey. This is how Viennese prefer their coffee to this day. Can you say “cafe latte”?

I will say, as a ‘tea drinker’, I was a bit skeptical about getting a good cuppa in a Viennese coffee house, but, I was not disappointed in the least! Served on a silver tray, in a proper teapot, with a lemon wedge and milk on the side, I couldn’t have been happier.

Coffee, as well, is always served on a tray, with a glass of water on the side, and in finer cafes, a spoon balanced on the rim. The water is a holdover from the Turkish custom to show the customer that they could stay as long as they wanted. I think it may be because Turkish coffee can be a bit strong. But, needless to say, the Viennese coffee house experience is one to treasure.

I’m getting a little off track, this is a post about the world-famous Sacher Torte, after all. “Torte” or “torten” began as a cake made from ground nuts. Nuts were less expensive than flour made from wheat. Cane sugar was extremely expensive, and, until the technique of extracting sugar from beets was perfected, most tortes were made with honey. As a result, they were quite dense.

So, what is the story behind the world famous “Torte”? It begins in 1832 when Prince von Metternich wanted to throw a spectacular party, and asked his chef to create a new dessert. The Prince wanted something unique, ‘masculine’, not light and fluffy. The palace’s chef fell ill and wasn’t able to come up with anything. Now what was the Prince to do! A 16-year old second apprentice in the kitchen, Franz Sacher, stepped up. Deciding that ‘chocolate’ was one of the most ‘masculine’ flavors, he combined that with apricot preserves, and a glossy chocolate glaze.

The dessert was a sensation. As a result, Franz’s career as a pastry chef catapulted. He was in demand everywhere and ended up in Demel, the royal bakery to the emperor. From there, this torte was offered to the masses. Franz became very successful, saved his money, and eventually opened his own bakery (taking his recipe with him). Franz’s son, Eduard, followed his father in the food business and in 1876 opened a cafe/hotel. Eduard decided that his father’s dessert should be the trademark for his hotel. Demel disagreed and continued to offer the cake at their bakery, along with all the copycat tortes being made elsewhere.

After two wars, Viennese businesses had a very difficult time fighting back into the economy. Whatever business owners could do to boost brand identification of a product was welcome. The Sacher Torte was being made everywhere, but the Sacher family wanted control and decided to sue Demel over the right to use their name. The fight ended up in court for seven long years. The court eventually concluded that Franz Sacher’s original recipe was unique and the Sacher family was awarded exclusive rights to the name, “The Original Sacher Torte”, which allowed the family to place an official chocolate seal on each cake.

Yes, you can purchase ‘Sacher-like’ tortes all over Austria, Germany and Budapest, but is it “The Original Sacher Torte”? The 14 bakers at the Hotel Sacher bake approximately 800 of these cakes a day. And, if you’d like to enjoy a slice at the Hotel, be prepared to stand in line for quite a while. For two days, we attempted it, but gave up and went across the street to a warm, cozy cafe. The “Original” is not only sold at the Sacher Hotel and Cafe, but at gift shops as well as the airport. Look for the ‘seal’ if you want the original.

Surprisingly, this chocolate confection is not the moist, gooey chocolate cake that you may have become accustomed to. It is quite dense, with a combination of chocolate flavors, and a thin spread of apricot preserves between the two layers … and is always served with a dollop of whipped cream. The original recipe remains a secret, of course, locked away somewhere safe, but you can enjoy many imitations throughout Europe. And, maybe you’ll be more patient than we were and stand outside in line (for hours) just to enjoy a slice. I hope you get the opportunity!

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STICKY TOFFEE APPLE PUDDING

October 2, 2021October 2, 2021Leave a comment

It’s Fall and what do you do on a gorgeous Fall day in New England? Go apple picking, of course! We were in New Hampshire and stumbled onto this remote, little apple orchard located down a very long, dirt road, nestled among tall, lumbering pine trees. No fancy signs with balloons announcing their location. No giant painted pumpkins, mind-numbing corn mazes or antique tractor displays … just apple trees. Apprehensively, we approached the little shed with the owner standing outside. “C’mon in”, he said “wanna pick some apples?” How could we not.

He explained the different varieties of apple trees and their location in the orchard, handed us a couple of paper bags and off we went. Picking didn’t take long, as the trees were heavy with fruit … Empire, Macouns, Macintosh, Golden Delicious and Cortland … all red, ripe and ready. After picking … and eating as many as we could … we managed to find our way back to the shed, where the owner weighed our bounty and offered us a slice of pie. Pie? Yes, every day his wife bakes an apple pie for anyone who, after a day of picking, would like to sit, relax and enjoy a slice of homemade apple pie. Needless to say, it was one of the best apple pies we’ve ever had.

Now, with more apples than we could possibly eat, it was time to get baking! So what to make? I certainly couldn’t compete with the apple pie we had at the orchard. I’ve made many strudels, cobblers and apple cakes. I wanted to make something different. How about an old fashioned steamed pudding?

My inspiration was the classic British dessert, Sticky Toffee Pudding. Putting on my creative baker hat once again, I came up with this Apple version. If you are a lover of classic steamed puddings, which, unlike cakes, are dense, moist and homey, then you must give this a try. Yes, it is a bit time consuming, but its the perfect thing to make on a chilly, Autumn afternoon.

This will feed anywhere from 6 hungry people to 12 easily. Serve it warm with a generous slug of the thick, sweet toffee topping. To heck with the calories … you burned them all off apple picking anyway!

STICKY TOFFEE APPLE PUDDING
Bake 350° for 60 to 70 minutes. Serves 6 to 10, depending upon portion size.

Toffee Sauce
1 15 oz. can sweetened condensed milk

Pudding/Cake/Batter
1/2 stick (4 tablespoons) butter
4-5 large apples, peeled, cored and cubed (approximately 6 cups)
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 cup chopped toasted walnuts or pecans (optional)

1 stick butter, melted
4 eggs, room temperature
1-1/2 cups brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2-1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder

Into a high-sided saucepan, place the entire can of sweetened condensed milk. Completely cover the can with water and bring to a boil. Then cover the saucepan and reduce the heat to a simmer. Let this simmer, covered, for at least two hours, while you make and bake the pudding. Check it every now and then to ensure the can is completely covered with simmering water. Refill water as needed.

Preheat the oven to 350° and butter six to eight ramekins. In a large baking or roasting pan, lay a kitchen towel. The ramekins are going to bake in a water bath and the towel keeps the dishes from bumping into each other.

In a large frypan, over medium heat, melt the butter and add the cubed apples. Sprinkle on the dark brown sugar, the cinnamon, nutmeg and the cornstarch. Mix gently. Cover and let it cook down for about 15 minutes or until the apples are softened and a sauce forms. If needed, add a bit of water. Stir gently.

While the apples are gently cooking, in a mixing bowl, beat the eggs and brown sugar. Add the melted butter and vanilla. Beat in the flour, cinnamon, salt and baking powder. Mix well, but don’t overbeat.

Spoon the apple filling into the pudding batter. With a wooden spoon, gently mix all together. Then spoon the batter into the buttered ramekins. Not too high. They will rise a bit. Sprinkle with toasted nuts, if you’d like.

Place the ramekins on the towel-lined baking pan. Then fill the baking pan with hot water until the water comes halfway up the sides of the dishes.

Cover the entire baking pan tightly with foil and bake at 350°. Bake for 60 to 70 minutes (depending upon the size of the ramekins). No peeking. Puddings take a bit longer to bake than cakes.

When done, remove the baking pan from the oven and let the puddings rest for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, take the can which has been bubbling away on the stove top, and holding it with a towel, carefully open it. It will be very hot. With a spoon, mix the thick, sweet sauce to smooth it out. Then spoon the toffee sauce into a serving bowl or pitcher.

To serve, either pop the pudding out of the ramekin and plate it or serve it right in the ramekin … and spoon a generous dollop of toffee sauce on top. For a little extra treat, you might want to have ice cream or whipped cream on hand. This is an absolutely rib-sticking, old fashioned dessert, hearty, sweet and full of chunky apples with a creamy toffee sauce … perfect for a cool Fall evening. i hope you and your family enjoy it as much as we did!!

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THE ‘CUP’ CAKE

March 9, 2018March 9, 2018Leave a comment

As I’m sure most of you, I grew up with the occasional packaged cupcake treat in my lunchbox. Whether it was Little Debbie’s or Hostess, that chocolaty cupcake with its white squiggle and creamy surprise inside was a lunchtime treat. Or if you were lucky enough to have a Mom who enjoyed baking, you probably had one of Mom’s yummy, little cakes for your lunchtime dessert. Cupcakes were child-sized, sweet desserts, which, for the most part, were served only at birthday parties and sold at school bake sales.

Somewhere along the line though that all changed. I believe it was in 2007 when Oprah waved her magic wand and swooned over the single-serving, glamorous little cakes being sold by Williams Sonoma, adding them to her much sought-after “O” list of ‘favorite things’. The homey cupcake quickly became one of the trendy foods. The trendy food title was then permanently cemented when Carrie Bradshaw and her girlfriends indulged in these miniature, buttercream topped cakes on an episode of the cultural phenomenon Sex in the City. Boom! All of a sudden a new industry was born. What were once lunchbox treats were now sought-after designer desserts. Specialized cupcake bakeries sprang up all over the country. The Food Network even created an entire baking competition series around them, “Cupcake Wars”.

If you are interested in the history of everyday things, as I am, you may have read about cupcakes being invented here in the U.S. in the late 1800s. Well, sorry to disappoint, but cupcakes have been around a lot longer than that. There are actually two schools of thought. One is that these small, single serving cakes, were derived from the very popular, single-serving mince pies so popular in England in the 18th century. The mince pies were baked in miniature, sculpted tin molds and were served displayed on a platter in an artfully-shaped pattern.

Queen’s cakes, spiced pound cakes with currants, were also quite popular. As the aristocracy tired of miniature mince pies, they turned to cakes. Chefs began using the tin molds, or “patty pans”, from baking mince pies to baking Queen’s cakes. Whether baked in these individual pans or cut out using them, these miniature, iced cakes would also be presented on a platter, forming a variety of elaborate patterns.

Having been made by a craftsman or tinsmith, a set of these miniature mince pie or cake molds would have been very expensive … something the middle and lower classes would never have been able to afford.

A very romantic, but probably unlikely theory, suggests that the baker or head chef would occasionally hold out a little batter from the large lavish cake he was preparing for the Lord of the Manor’s evening dinner, to give a bit of a treat to the staff. Certainly, not enough for an entire cake, but enough perhaps for a few single servings. After the aristocracy enjoyed their lavishly decorated dessert cake, the staff downstairs could look forward to enjoying the leftover cake batter, baked in earthenware tea ‘cups’.

The very popular, early 19th century British cookbook author, Maria Rundell, actually suggested baking cakes in ‘little tins, tea-cups or saucers’. In her book, A New System of Domestic Cookery: Formed Upon Principles of Economy and Adapted to the Use of Private Families. By a Lady, Mrs. Rundell suggests two ways for baking these miniature cakes “… butter little tins, tea-cups, or saucers, and bake the batter in, filling only half. Sift a little fine sugar over just as you put into the oven.” or “… butter small patty pans, half fill, and bake twenty minutes in a quick oven.” [A New System of Domestic Cookery. Maria Rundell, 1808]. It seems to me using “buttered tea cups” would certainly make something called a ‘cup cake’.

The second school of thought for the origin of “cup cakes” is that name for the individual cakes came from the measurement of ingredients required to bake a cake. Prior to this, measurements were by weight … now they were by volume or “cup”. These cakes became known as number cakes, or 1-2-3-4 cakes because the easy-to-remember recipe called for: one cup of butter, two cups of sugar, three cups of flour, and four eggs. I’m not sure how this simple recipe became associated with individual servings of cakes baked in cups. For that reason, and because in Great Britain baking is still measured by weight, I’m going along with the first belief.

Wall Street and the Huffington Post report that the “cupcake craze” is over. But, I’m not convinced. You can’t go into a shopping district or market place without seeing one, perhaps two, specialized cupcake bakeries. Even the bakery departments in supermarkets have upgraded their grocery store bakes, selling delectable little treats, individually or prepackaged, in tiny ‘one bites’ up to massive ‘two-handers’. Every season and holiday now has a festive cupcake specifically decorated for that event.

What once was a simple, little lunchbox treat has grown into a cottage industry. Customers patiently line up at cupcake food trucks anxious to try some of the creative, and occasionally unusual, flavors which seem to be a very popular trend. No longer are we satisfied with vanilla. Now it has to be peanut butter fudge, lemon blueberry ripple, salted caramel apple, banana toffee crunch …. and more.

Maybe Wall Street is right and the frosting has fallen off some of the top cupcake chains, but I don’t know anyone who doesn’t become a child again at the irresistible offering of a cupcake. For me though, there will never be anything better than that little chocolaty treat with the white squiggle on top and the surprise inside!

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References: Researching Food, Revolvy, Cupcakes, The Atlantic, Food Timeline
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ECCLES CAKES

March 10, 2017July 19, 20211 Comment

What a strange name … Eccles Cakes (especially when you consider they aren’t cakes at all). On one of our early trips to England, hubby said “I know you’re going to love these things. Don’t ask. Just try one.” Knowing me as well as he does, I fell in love with them. These hand-held puff pastry confections are flaky and full of dried fruits. Think of our fruit-filled turnover, but with dried fruits instead of fresh. Made well, they are delicious … made badly, they are cloyingly sweet.

These puff pastries were quite a success when they were first sold in a little shop in Eccles, a small town just west of Manchester, England, in 1793 by James Birch. Mr. Birch is thought to have come across the recipe for “sweet patties” in the best selling cookbook of that time, “THE EXPERIENCED ENGLISH HOUSEKEEPER“. The original recipe for “sweet patties” consisted of a mincemeat filling wrapped with puff pastry and then fried or baked. The mincemeat, which this recipe called for, was “the meat of a boiled calf’s foot, plus apples, oranges, nutmeg, egg yolk, currants and French brandy”.

Artist Joseph Parry, Manchester Art Gallery

But neither Mr. Birch, nor The Experienced English Housekeeper invented these flat patties. It seems they date as far back as the 1500’s. Every year, the townsfolk would celebrate the construction of the “Eccles” church. As part of the church fair, these brandy and mincemeat “cakes” were served. The fairs were so popular they attracted people from all over and became quite rowdy, often resulting in bloody mayhem. But when the Puritan, Oliver Cromwell, came into power in 1650, he banned the Eccles celebrations and he banned the very popular Eccles Cakes.

I just love learning about the sometimes bizarre origins of traditional foods. The next step, of course, is learning how to make them so we can enjoy them at home and not have to wait for our next trip to England. I know Eccles Cakes are available in export shops and international food stores, but the packaged ones aren’t that good …. sorry!

Traditional recipes for Eccles Cakes call for a large circle of pastry, which is then filled, sealed, turned upside down and baked … hoping that they’ve been sealed tightly so that the filling does not run out of the pastry. My recipe uses far less sugar than standard recipes and uses two pastry circles – one for the top and one for the bottom – which is then crimped and sealed (easier and less chance of seepage). I think Eccles Cakes also need some crunch and a little acid (they can be cloyingly sweet), so I’ve added the zest of one lemon and toasted walnuts. Now this is a recipe worth making! Enjoy

ECCLES CAKES
Pre-heat the oven to 400°. Makes 24 3″ pastries.

4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter
1-1/4 cup dried fruits (any blend of currants, raisins, sultanas, etc.)
½ cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons cane syrup or honey
½ tsp allspice
½ tsp nutmeg
½ tsp cinnamon
zest of one lemon
½ cup chopped walnuts, toasted

1 box (17.5 oz. package) frozen puff pastry, thawed
1 egg white, beaten
Demerara sugar (or table sugar)

In a small saucepan, over medium heat, melt the butter and stir in all the other ingredients. After the sugar has dissolved, take it off the heat to cool and add the zest of one lemon.

Using one sheet at a time (put the other into the frig to stay cold), on a floured board, roll out the pastry to approximately 12” or ¼” thick.

With a pastry cutter, biscuit cutter, or whatever you like to use, cut out approximately 24 circles. One will be for the bottom, one for the top. Brush all the pastry circles with the beaten egg white. Place a heaping teaspoonful of filling in the center of 12 circles. Take the top circle, place it on top of the bottom, covering the filling completely and then seal or crimp the edges together.

Place the filled, sealed circles of pastry onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Brush the tops with more egg white. With a sharp knife, make two slits into the top for the steam to escape. Sprinkle each with Demerara sugar. Then place the baking sheet into the refrigerator to keep cold while you prepare the second sheet of puff pastry.

After you’ve finished the second sheet, you should have two trays with approximately 12 Eccles cakes on each … ready to bake. Puff pastry bakes up lighter and fluffier when its really cold, so be sure to put the finished trays into the refrigerator while you preheat the oven.

Bake them on at 400° for about 15 to 20 minutes or until they are golden brown. Move to a wire rack to cool. They’ll keep beautifully for about three to four days (but not in my house).

You can certainly make larger cakes, if you’d like, but for me, these sweet little confections are the perfect size for your afternoon tea. And I must say one of these Eccles Cakes with a cup of one of my most favorite teas, a Golden Yunnan, is so satisfying!

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References: Lancashire Eccles Cakes, Salford, Eccles Historic Society
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SUMMER PUDDING

June 25, 2015August 22, 2017Leave a comment

It’s June. My most favorite month of the year. It’s also our wedding anniversary and I wanted to make a very special British dessert. But when you think of British desserts, heavy, rich pastries, cakes and steamed puddings come to mind. So, what should it be? June is the month when strawberries, raspberries and blackberries are plentiful. Seems like the perfect time to attempt a Summer Pudding!

Of course, I can’t begin to make something without first doing a bit of research. All recipes, no matter the country or the culture, originated out of necessity …. using what was in season, as well as using up items that might already be in the kitchen (before they go bad). It seems to me this recipe originated for both those reasons. The ingredients are very simple, seasonal berries, bread and some sugar for sweetening.

This pudding (dessert) is not from Elizabethan England as I had thought. It was created in the early 1900s and originally called “Hydropathic Pudding”. “Hydropathic” because it contained a lot of water and was served to those who couldn’t tolerate the heavier, rich pastry desserts that Great Britain was serving at that time. Because it was deemed “healthy”, it was routinely served to patients in nursing homes and hospitals, as well as to those staying in “health spas” wanting to shed a few pounds. Is it healthier than other desserts? I’ll leave that for you to decide.

FIRST EDITION OF LIZZIE HERITAGE’S CASSELL’S NEW UNIVERSAL COOKERY BOOK, 1894,

The recipe seems to have first appeared as “Hydropathic Pudding” in 1894 in one of the essential Victorian cookbooks at the time, Lizzie Heritage’s Cassell’s New Universal Cookery Book. But apparently, the name “Hydropathic Pudding” didn’t make peoples’ mouth’s water. I don’t know who decided to change the name to “Summer Pudding” but it seems to have been established by 1904 when Miss E.S. Poynter, a missionary in of all places, India, used this name in her cookbook, “Cooking in India“.

The traditional recipe calls for a mixture of blackberries, raspberries and black currants. Unfortunately, this is NEW England and I can’t find black currants anywhere. So, it’s going to be cherries!

SUMMER PUDDING
³⁄₄ cup sugar
Juice of 1 lemon
5 cups of washed blackberries, blueberries, raspberries and cherries (pitted and halved)
10 slices white bread (I used Pepperidge Farm), with crusts removed
to serve:
2 cups sweetened whipped cream
sprigs of fresh mint

The preparation time for this is about 10 to 15 minutes. It does, however, have to chill in the refrigerator preferably overnight, but at least 5 to 6 hours. So, if you are going to be serving this after dinner, be sure to get it in the frig first thing in the morning.

Wash and prepare all your fruit. You’ll need at least 5 to 6 cups. Put the fruit into a saucepan and add 3/4 cup of sugar and the juice of one lemon. I think the acidity from the lemon juice helps to cut the sweetness of the fruits.

Bring to a boil and then simmer for about two minutes – just until the sugar is dissolved. If you cook the fruit too long, it will turn into jam. Turn off the heat and let cool.

Find a bowl (glass, plastic, ceramic – it doesn’t matter) which will be the pudding’s mold. The first cut of bread you want to make is the one that will fit on the bottom of the bowl (which will become the top of the pudding). Put the bowl on top of the bread and use that as a template. Cut to fit.

Dip the trimmed bread into the pan to sop up the sweetened berry juice, then place it juice-side down (which will be facing out after you unmold it).

Continue dipping the bread into the pan to absorb the berry juice and line the bowl. It doesn’t have to be perfect. Squish the bread together so there aren’t any gaps. When finished, take a slotted spoon and take the berries out of the pan and put them into the bread-lined mold.

Then cover the top with more bread dipped in juice. Make sure the seal is tight.

Top the bowl with a plate that will fit inside. Then place a weight of some sort on the plate. You want to press the pudding together so that it will setup. Chill til firm – 6 hours or overnight.

It’s time for the unmolding ……. keeping fingers crossed!

Run a knife around the edge of the bowl, when ready to serve. Place a plate on and flip. It should unmold without any difficulty. Garnish with whipped cream and enjoy! Serves 4 to 6 easily.

So light, fruity and refreshing. This is a dessert which will have your family and friends wondering how you did it. Absolutely delicious!!

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References: Oxford Companion to Food, Alan Davidson, Household Books, BBC.UK/recipes
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Millionaire’s Shortbread

March 15, 2015July 21, 2021Leave a comment

The first time I had this rich, buttery piece of deliciousness was about ten years ago, in a basement tearoom of an old Manor House in Cornwall. The tearoom was very modest, providing visitors with just a quick cuppa and a biscuit (cookie) or scone. But standing out among the other biscuits was this stunning shortbread …. a buttery cookie base with gooey caramel filling, topped with a thick layer of milk chocolate. Irresistible!!

But now, at least 10 years later, Millionaire’s Shortbread is EVERYWHERE! From the food counters at M&S, to the bakery cases in the finest patisserie, to handy packages of 2, 4 or 6 pieces at every roadside rest area shop. But, honestly, even the prepackaged shortbreads were pretty darn good.

How did Millionaire’s Shortbread get it’s name?
Shortbread originated in Scotland around the 12th century as a simple unleavened biscuit (cookie) using just the ingredients available in most homes at that time ….. butter, flour, sugar. The refinement of this biscuit didn’t occur until Mary Queen of Scots assigned her French chefs to the task. Only with the addition of more butter, more sugar, a pinch of salt, and formed into different shapes, did this delectable morsel become in demand. Over time, other ingredients were added, lemon, almonds, ginger, cinnamon. This version, with its creamy caramel center and thick milk chocolate topping, didn’t appear until the 19th century. It is said that to be able to afford this decadently RICH biscuit you actually had to be a “Millionaire”.

Of course, I had to try my hand at making it. I must admit to a couple of fails (overbaked shortbread, burnt caramel, etc.), but the last one turned out exactly how I remembered it. So, don’t be afraid to make a mistake (or two), it’s well worth the effort in the end.

MILLIONAIRE’S SHORTBREAD
Shortbread base:
2 sticks butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
2-1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup cornstarch

Caramel filling:
1/2 cup water
2-1/2 cups sugar
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup heavy cream

Chocolate topping:
10 oz. chocolate – milk, semi-sweet, or dark
1 teaspoon vegetable oil

Preheat oven to 350°. Grease and flour, or line with parchment paper a 9″ x 13″ baking pan. I recommend using parchment paper. It makes getting the shortbread out of the baking pan much easier.

In one bowl mix together the flour and cornstarch. In another bowl using a stand or hand mixer, beat the softened butter til creamy. Add 1/2 cup of sugar to the creamed butter and beat til lemony colored, light and airy.

Using a wooden spoon, slowly add the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture, blending well. The mixture will be very crumbly (short). Don’t overwork the dough or your cookies will be tough. Dump the batter into the prepared baking pan and press down with your hands. Use whatever you happen to have (with a flat bottom) to press the batter down firmly and evenly.

Bake at 350° for 16 to 18 minutes – just until its set and lightly browned. Take the shortbread out of the oven and let it cool in the pan while you prepare the caramel.

The caramel can be tricky (believe me, I’ve burnt a couple of batches). The secret is to not stir it, or take your eyes off it, while its boiling away. A minute will make all the difference. If you want to use a candy thermometer, then by all means use it. I didn’t.

Using a heavy, high-sided saucepan pour the sugar into the center of the pan. Then carefully pour the water around the outside of the sugar. Try not to get the sugar onto the sides of the pan or it will crystallize. If this happens, have a pastry brush handy in a cup of water to wash down the sides of the pan. Do not stir the sugar and water together. Just let it be.

Using medium heat, bring the sugar and water to a boil – NO STIRRING. When it boils, reduce the heat to low and let it boil away until its caramel colored. You can determine how dark you want it … but don’t let it burn. This will take about 15 minutes.

When it is ready, remove the pan from the heat and drop in 2 tablespoons of butter. The mixture will immediately boil up. Using a wooden spoon, quickly stir in the butter. Now pour in the 1/2 cup of heavy cream. Again the mixture will bubble up. Stir it down quickly. Continue stirring until the caramel has cooled down and thickened. This will take about 5 minutes.

When it is ready, pour the caramel over the cooled shortbread and place the pan into the refrigerator to let the caramel set.

This is the easiest part … dump a bag of chocolate chips (milk chocolate or semi-sweet, it’s up to you), into a microwave-proof bowl and melt the chocolate. When its melted, stir in the oil. Quickly pour the warm chocolate over the cooled caramel filling and, with the back of a spatula, smooth out the surface. Let the chocolate cool completely.

When ready to serve, take the shortbread out of the pan. If you’ve used parchment paper, you can just lift it up and out. Using a very sharp knife, cut the shortbread into bars or squares. It’s up to you! Stack them up on a plate and keep an eye on them because they’ll disappear right before your eyes. But, if they don’t, they’ll keep very well in an airtight container.