I’ve had a few recipes saved up for the time when we don’t have a kitchen, and this recipe for chocolate and salted caramel squares is one of them. I apologise if you’re trying to be healthy there are some links to healthier things at the bottom of this post! The original title of this recipe (which I found on the BBC website) is ‘Salted chocolate and caramel squares’ – but as you can see, I’ve changed it slightly as it makes far more sense to me this way around! Whatever you decide to call them, this is a delicious twist on the traditional millionaire’s shortbread and the almonds and vanilla in the base are simply delicious. The caramel here is fairly runny and I could not get it to thicken up, so next time I make it I might use the recipe that I use for millionnaire’s flapjack with the addition of some salt. But if you prefer your caramel slightly thinner, this works just fine (and it tastes delicious anyway!).

Chocolate and salted caramel squares: ingredients

For the base
2 tbsp butter, for greasing
175g/6oz plain flour
25g/1oz cornflour
50g/2oz golden caster sugar
85g/3oz finely chopped toasted almonds
140g/5oz unsalted butter
1 vanilla pod, seeds scraped out

For the caramel
225g/8oz golden caster sugar
100ml/3½fl oz water
150ml/5fl oz single cream
50g/2oz butter, cubed
½ tsp salt

For the topping
225g/9oz dark chocolate, 70 per cent cocoa solids
85g/3oz butter

Method

1. For the base, preheat the oven to 160C/310F/Gas 3. Grease a 20cm x 23cm/8in x 9in baking tin with butter.

2. Sift the flour, cornflour and sugar into a large bowl. Stir in the almonds, then rub in the butter and vanilla seeds.

3. Press the mixture into the base of the prepared tin. Transfer to the oven and bake for 35-40 minutes, or until lightly golden. Allow to cool.

4. For the caramel, place the sugar and water into a heavy-based pan and heat gently until the sugar dissolves. Turn up the heat and simmer for 4-5 minutes, or until it turns dark amber.

5. Stir in the cream, taking care as it will bubble up. Stir in the butter and salt. Pour the caramel over the shortbread and leave to cool (I put it in the fridge overnight, but a few hours would do it).

6. For the topping, melt the chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of gently simmering water. Pour the chocolate over the caramel and smooth out with a wet palette knife.

7. Place into the fridge and chill for at least 30 minutes, until firm. Cut into 16 pieces and serve.

Post updated 2nd October 2020.

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Having made my own lemon curd last year, I’ve been completely hooked on it ever since! But not so long ago I discovered raspberry curd (shop-bought) and decided that I’d definitely have a go at making it myself. This weekend I finally got around to doing it – yay! It’s really creamy and zingy at the same time, and if you love lemon curd then you’ll love this too.

I found this recipe on The Claytons Blog – I chose this recipe because it doesn’t require a microwave (we don’t have one). The recipe says to make the curd in a bowl over a pan of simmering water, but after 10 minutes of whisking frantically and nothing happening, I ended up just putting it into a pan (which is what I do with lemon curd). This worked much better, so I’ll just do it in a pan next time!

Ingredients (makes 4 8oz jars)

500g fresh raspberries
4 tablespoons water
125g golden caster sugar
2 tablespoons cornflour
4 egg yolks plus 2 whole eggs, lightly beaten
125g butter, cut into small pieces
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Method

1. Put the water and berries in a large pan and bring to the boil. Put a lid on the pot and allow it to simmer for about 20 minutes or until very soft.

2. Place into a food processor or blender and whizz up very very well. Take care here because the fruit is really hot! Once blended, pour through a fine sieve with a bowl underneath, making sure there are no seeds in the bowl. Allow to cool for at least 10 minutes before moving on to step 3 – otherwise you may end up scrambling the eggs by mistake!

3. If you would like to use the bowl/pan of water method, place the berry sauce, eggs, butter, sugar, lemon juice and cornflour into the bowl and have a pot of simmering water ready. Place the bowl over the water (making sure the bowl doesn’t touch the water) and whisk until the butter melts and the curd is thick. Alternatively, put the eggs into a pan and whisk – then add all of the other ingredients and whisk over a medium-low heat.

4. When the curd is thick, you can pour it into your pre-sterilised jars. Place a wax disk on top and seal the lid tightly.

Store in a cool place (in the fridge once opened) and use within a month. That probably won’t be a problem – it’s so yummy! I’ll be making loads of this when raspberries are in season!

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