Cashew Caramel Cracker Bars Recipes

CARAMEL-CASHEW BARS

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F (if using dark or nonstick pan, heat oven to 325°F). Spray 15x10x1-inch pan with cooking spray.
• In large bowl, beat shortening, butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar with electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Beat in flour, cinnamon and baking soda, scraping bowl occasionally, until well blended. Stir in 1 cup of the cashews. Spread dough in pan.
• Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, in 2-quart saucepan, heat caramels and milk over medium heat, stirring frequently, until caramels are melted; keep warm.
• Spread caramel over slightly cooled bars. Sprinkle remaining 1/2 cup cashews over caramel. Cool completely, about 30 minutes. For bars, cut into 8 rows by 6 rows. Store covered in refrigerator.

SALTED CARAMEL-CASHEW BARS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F and line an 8-inch baking dish with foil. Whisk together flour, powdered sugar, and salt in a medium bowl. Cut butter into 1/2-inch pieces; sprinkle over flour mixture and use a pastry cutter to cut in evenly until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add dough to prepared baking dish; use a piece of parchment to press dough into an even layer. Bake for 23 minutes, until crust is lightly golden. Cool on wire rack.
• Place butter and brown sugar in a heavy saucepan. Melt over medium heat, stirring constantly with a rubber spatula, until boiling. Once mixture boils, reduce temperature to medium-low and let bubble for 3 more minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat; carefully add salt and vanilla (mixture will bubble up). Quickly pour caramel over shortbread layer and spread with an offset spatula. Top with cashews, pressingly gently to adhere; sprinkle with sea salt. Chill in the refrigerator until completely set, about 1 hour.
• Carefully lift foil and place bars on a cutting board; use a sharp knife to cut into squares. Store leftover squares in an airtight container at room temperature.

CASHEW CARAMEL CRACKER BARS

Steps:

• 1. Preheat the oven to 425ºF. To make the cookies easy to remove, line a 10-by-15-inch jelly roll pan with a sheet of foil, shiny side up, leaving a few inches hanging over the long edges. Drizzle 1/4 cup melted butter onto the foil-lined pan, and brush to cover the bottom. Arrange the crackers, side by side and evenly spaced, so they completely cover the bottom of the pan (don't worry if there are small gaps).2. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine the remaining 1 cup butter and the brown sugar and bring to a boil. Boil for 2 minutes, until the mixture forms a thick syrup (248ºF on a candy thermometer). Remove from the heat and slowly whisk in the condensed milk until blended. Pour the mixture over the crackers, making sure all the crackers are covered.3. Bake for 10 minutes. The top will be bubbly and brown. Remove from the oven, scatter the chocolate chips over the topping, and allow them to melt for 5 minutes. Using the back of a spoon or an offset spatula, spread the chocolate over the surface and sprinkle with the nuts. Using your fingers or the back of a spoon, press the nuts into the chocolate. Freeze until the chocolate sets, about 30 minutes.4. Remove from the freezer and invert the pan onto a clean surface (don't worry if you lose some nuts from the surface they'll be great for topping an ice cream sundae or for adding to cookie dough). Carefully peel back the foil to reveal the soda-cracker underside of the cookies. Using a sharp knife, cut the cookies along the cracker outlines. This is easier to do when the cookies have begun to thaw slightly. Invert and cut the squares into quarters for bite-size pieces or thirds for finger-size pieces.VariationFor Crunchy Nut Caramel Bars, follow the main recipe, substituting your favorite toasted nuts, such as hazelnuts, almonds, peanuts, or walnuts.From Holiday Baking. Text copyright © 2005 by Sara Perry. Photographs copyright © 2005 by Leigh Beisch. All rights reserved. First published by Chronicle Books LLC, San Francisco, California.