Chocolate Dulce de Leche Bars
Don’t you just love this time of the year? It’s only a short time after Christmas yet we all have an excuse to eat more chocolate and lots of sweets….go Valentine’s Day! Since we are doing on All Through the Year Cheer event this month I have a great excuse to try as many delicious chocolate recipes as possible 
When I came across this gem of a recipe I knew it had to be tried. Chocolate and dulce de leche together….I’m in! This recipe is simple and elegant all at the same time. You can dress it up with berries if you want, but unfortunately I could not get a good shot of the bars decorated with the fruit. I’m going to blame this on all the dark gray weather we have been experiencing here in New York. Not always the best for food photography. If you want to make this recipe more complicated feel free to make your own dulce de leche, but I was lazy and didn’t feel like going that route. The best place to look for canned dulce de leche is in a Spanish market or the Spanish food isle of your local grocery store.
Now if you are wondering how this tastes, the answer is amazing. It has a nice buttery shortbread bottom and the topping has a nice rich chocolate flavor with a hint of the deep caramel like dulce de leche flavor. The topping sets up nicely but melts deliciously on the tongue. Now that I’m writing about this bar I need to get myself another one. While I’m eating this lovely little bar why don’t you go and make them? I know you will love them! Enjoy!!!
Chocolate Dulce de Leche Bars
Yield: 24 bars
Ingredients:
For shortbread Crust:
1 stick unsalted butter - softened
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
For chocolate dulce de leche:
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup dulce de leche
4 large egg yolks
5 ounces 60% bittersweet chocolate - finely chopped
Source:Epicurious
Directions:
Make shortbread crust:
Preheat oven to 375°F with rack in middle. Butter a shallow 9- to 9 1/2-inch square baking pan (1 to 1 1/2 inches deep). Line bottom and 2 sides with parchment paper, leaving an overhang. Butter parchment.
Blend together butter, brown sugar, vanilla, and salt in a bowl with a fork. Sift in flour and blend with fork until a soft dough forms.
Spread dough evenly in baking pan using an offset spatula or back of a spoon, then prick all over with fork.
Bake until golden, 15 to 20 minutes, then cool completely in pan on a rack, about 30 minutes.
Make chocolate dulce de leche:
Bring cream and dulce de leche to a simmer in a small heavy saucepan, stirring with a wooden spoon until dulce de leche has dissolved.
Whisk together yolks in a bowl, then slowly whisk in hot cream mixture. Return to pan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until pan is visible in tracks of spoon and mixture registers 170°F on an instant-read thermometer. The texture will remind you of pudding. Remove from heat and whisk in chocolate until melted.
Make bars:
Pour chocolate mixture over cooled shortbread and chill, uncovered, until cold and set, about 2 hours.
Run a small knife around edges to loosen, then transfer to a cutting board using parchment. Cut with a hot clean knife (dip in hot water and wipe clean between cuts) into 24 bars. Chill until ready to serve.
OMgosh, I’m totally freaking out b/c I absolutely have to make these but can’t think of a reason to! I can’t send them to work with my husband b/c they need to be refrigerated. I don’t have a party coming up and if I just make them for us, we will seriously eat them all. Who am I kidding? I will eat them all! Excuse me while I furiously scrabble for a reason to make these…
OH gosh, these look absolutely incredible!
Oh these look amazing.
Pass one this way please, or two! They look divine with my absolute favorite dulce de leche!
My sweet tooth and I just had a little meet and we both agree that from a scale of 1 to 10 — this is a way up there 10!!! Bookmarked!!
Yum!
Mimi
Wow! What a great combo…chocolate and dulce de leche, with a shortbread crust to boot! YUM! I must say, that chocolate cookie on the prior post looks mighty good too!
Thanks for sharing this recipe. I really feel hungry now! Nice idea, homemade chocolate bars.
Cheers,
Carsten
tasteandshare.com
food social network * wine social network
this looks and sounds like an optimized twix bar. in other words, it’s amazing. however, i suspect you’d find me flicking off the shortbread part and just inhaling the chocolate-dulce de leche portion.
Chocolate + dulce de leche = heaven
I’m drooling all over the keyboard and desk…
Veronica: Try using this excuse – “I feel the need to continue baking and learning new recipes.” That way you can blame education on your need to eat these treats
Jessica: Oh yes very incredible!
Peabody: I hope you give them a whirl. You won’t be disappointed.
Reeni: Two coming your way!
Jenn: Hahaha you crack me up. That sweet tooth of yours is very brilliant
Mimi: I agree!
Sue: The shortbread crust is such a great vehicle to support the delicious chocolate dulce de leche combo…yum!
Carsten: Thanks for visiting my site!
Grace: It is sorta like a tweaked twix. I love that you would just go right for the fudgy topping and leave the cookie in the dust…haha.
Chiara: Thanks for visiting my site
Chocolate & dulce de leche is a combination that I really can’t pass up! I love your description of how the chocolate melts on the tongue…OMG, I need to make these!
Well, you sure do know how to welcome a new visitor, Nutmeg Nanny. Heavenly, simply delightful!!!
Thank you for sharing…
thanks for the recipe – these look great and I will be making them probably this weekend!
Oh! What a great combination…chocolate and dulce de leche…I already know that I’ll like this…the bars look gorgeous…yummie
Sounds like a perfect combination! Love the description of it melting in your mouth!
Those bars look incredible!
I’m a chocolate addict and these are over the top gorgeous…I want one now!
Ooooh! This just made my mouth water! I’ve never tried to make anything like this, but I just might have to give it a try. Thanks for sharing!
Whoa! Yummmy.
Your blog is too cute.
Xoxo- Emily
You can’t go wrong with chocolate and dulce de leche! Oh, and add a buttery shortbread crust? Amazing!
Hi Brandy
It is my first time visiting your site and I am getting excited! Great recipes, I did make this cookie once but used only a plain ganache; I am sure the dulce de leche gives it depth of flavor.
I am going to submit my Valentine recipe soon.
Ciao
Joumana
Wow – so decadent and lovely!
Out of this world good, Brandy.
I am soooo craving these right now, must try!!
OMG – I could gobble these up right now.
Wow, these look addictive! What beautiful photos. I love the idea of a hint of caramel.
Hi, Does C stand for cup? (I’m in the UK where we don’t really use them as a measurement).
Thanks,
Kat
Oh my goodness these are SO drool worthy!!
These look amazing!
I loveeeeeee Dulce de Leche. These look delish
WHY ARE MY CHOCOLATE DULCE DE LECHE BARS RUNNY?? WHAT DID I DO WRONG
admin replied: — December 2nd, 2011 @ 5:13 pm
Hi Julie,
I’m sorry that your bars are runny. Did you make sure to heat them to 170 degrees? Before you add the chocolate the filling has to be pudding like in consistency. If the filling is too lose it will not set up properly. Also make sure you let your bars cool for the full 2 hours…or longer.